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THE 



HISTORY OF THE WORLD, 



FROM THE 



iSarlicst ^txioti to tje ^reisent Cime : 

iSRANGED SO THAT THE WHOLE MAT BE READ BY PERIODS, OR 
THE HISTORY OF ANY COUNTRY BY ITSELF. 

EMBELLISHED WITH 

©nt lliunbrtli anb qr^tntj Bufirabtb Illustrations. 



" - -7 

BY DIONYSIUS LARDNER, LL.D. 



WITH 



EXTENSIVE ADDITIONS, BRINGING THE HISTORY OF EACH 
COUNTRY DOWN TO THE LATEST PERIDI>.- ^ 



PHILADELPHIA: 
CLAXTON, REMSEN & HAFFELFINGER, 

G24, 626 & 628 Market Street. 
1875. 




.K^r^ 



THE LIBRARY 
OF CONGRESS 

WASHINGTON 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by 

CLAXTON, REMSEN &. lIArEELFIX(ii:E, 

in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



Extract from a iiotice of Lardner^s Universal Hisionj, hy Dr. Frost, 
the celebrated American Historiographer. 

*' It is drawn with a masterly hand. The broad lines, the cha- 
racteristic features, are all there. The lover of antiquity — the 
admirer of cliivalry — the student of modern politics — will alike be 
struck with its force and truth ; and the youthful reader may con- 
template its bold outline without fear of its corrupting his taste or 
misleading his judgment." 



' t\ 



PREFACE. 



The object of the writer of the present volume has been 
to give a correct and comprehensive view of the history of 
the world, which accuracy of narration and chronology 
would render valuable as a book of reference, and in which 
general views and reflections would remove the dryness 
inseparable from a mere enumeration of facts. To the 
separate histories of different countries it is as a general 
map of the whole combined, representing in connection 
what they exhibit isolated, and displaying the relative pro- 
portions and importance of the several parts. So that the 
attentive reader will find himself conversant and his mind 
impressed wJrh most of the great characters and events 
which occur in the history of the world. 

For the plan of dividing the work into periods, the 
author is indebted to the celebrated Mliller, and has adopted 
several of the divisions employed by him in his Universal 
History. That work, with those of Schlosser, Gibbon, 
Hallam, and others, has been used in the preparation of the 
work, with constant reference to contemporary and national 
histories. 



▼I PREFACE. 

To prevent any misconception, the reader is requested to 
bear in mind that this is a national and political history 
mankind being regarded in it as divided into great societies 
" Consequently, when religions are treated of, whether the 
true or the false, they are regarded only in their political 
relations and their bearings on national progress and 
character. Theological discussion would be entirely out 
of place in a work of this kind. \ 

There is an Index at the end of the work, by consulting 
"which, under the head of any country, the history of that 
country may be read in its historical and chronological 
order. This will be done by referring to the pages under 
its name. The wars and political relations of two countries 
will be best known by reading the corresponding parts of 
the history of each. 



CONTENTS. 
PART I. 

ANCIENT HISTORY. 

CHAP. I. 

Introduction. 
Of Man, 15. Original Seat of Man— Original State of Man, 16. 
Ethiopians, 17. Chinese, 18. India, 22. 

CHAP. 11. 

Ancient States of Central and Western Asia. 
Bactria, 23. Babylon and Assyria, 24. Egypt, 27. Phoenida, 29. 
Philistines, 29. Arabia — Israelites, 30. Medes and Persians, 38. 

CHAP. III. 

Greece. 
Early State of Greece, 45. Dorian Migration, 49. Sparta, 60. 
Athens, 51. 

CHAP. IV. 
Greece to her Subversion hy the Macedoniant, 
Persian War, 56. Peloponnesian War, 68. Lacedaemonian Do- 
minion, 63. Theban Dominion, 64. Philip of Macedon, 67. 

CHAP. V. 

Alexander and hie Successors. 
Alexander, 69. Division of Alexander's Dominions, 70. Macedon — 
Greece, 74. Thrace — Bithynia, 75. Pergamus — Pontus, 76. Ar- 
menia — Syria, 7P. Judea, 80. Parthia — Egypt, 81. Carthage, 82. 

CHAP. VI. 

Rome till the Punic Wars. 
Rome under Kings. 85. Tuscans — War with Porsenna, 91. Dicta- 
tor — Secession — Tribunes, 92. Spurius Cassius, and the Agrarian 
Law, 94. The Decemvirs and the Twelve Tables, 97. Spurius 
Moelius, 98. Wars anterior to the Gallic invasion, 101. Gauls — 
Capture of Rome, 102. Rebuilding of the City — Manlius, 103. 
Licinian Rogations, 104. Samnite War — Latin War, 108. War 
with Pyrrhus, 109. 

CHAP. VIL 
Borne till the Time of the Gracchi. 
Tirst Punic War, 110. Illyrian War— Gailic War, 123. Second 
Punic War, 114. Macedonian and Syrian Wars, 115. Conqueat 

vii 



Till CONTENTS. 

of Macedon — Third Punie War, 116. Achaean War, 119. Spanish 
Wars, 12U 

CHAP. VIII. 

Rome till the End of the Repuhlic, 

The Gracchi, 121. Jugurthine War — Cimbric War, 125. State of 
Rome — Social or Marsian War, 126. Mithridatic and Civil Wars, 
127. From the death of Sulla to that of Mithridates, 132. Cati- 
line's Conspiracy — The Gallic War of Csesar, 134. Civil War of 
Caesar and Pompeiua, 139. Events till the Death of Caesar, 143. 
Civil War with Brutus and Cassius, 144. War between Octavianua 
and Antonius, 147. 

CHAP. IX. 
Rome an Empire. 

Emperors of the Caesarian Family, 151. Emperors chosen by the 
Army, 155. Flavian Family, 156. Good Emperors, 159. From 
Commodus to Diocletian, 161. Change in the Form of Govern- 
ment, 168. Corruption of Christianity, 170. 

CHAP. X. 

Decline of the Empire. 
Successors of Constantine, 174. The Huns, 179. Wars with the 
Goths, 180. Genseric and Attila, 185. Fall of the Western Em- 
pire, 187. 



PART II. 

THE MIDDLE AGES. 

CHAP. I. 

Eatabliahment of the Barbarians in the Western Empire. 

Gotho-Germans, 192. East-Goths in Italy, 192. Lombards in Italy 
— Burgundians, 194. Allemanni, 195. Franks, 196. Anglo- 
Saxons, 199. West-Goths in Spain, 200. Byzantine Empire, 201. 
Persia, 206. 

CHAP. II. 
TTie Times of 3fohammed and the First Khalifs. 

Mohammed, 208. First Khalifs, 214. Conquest of Syria, 215. Con- 
quest of Persia — Conquest of Egypt, 219. Invasion of Africa. 220. 
Ommiyades — Conquest of Africa — Conquest of Spain, 221. Inva- 
sion of France by the Arabs, 222. France — Lombards, 225. Con- 
stantinople, 226. Germany — England, 227. 

CHAP. IIL 

The Times of Charlemagne and Haroon-er-rasheed. 

Italy, 227. Empire of Charlemagne, 231. Feudal System, 232. 
England — Constantinople, 234. Abbaside Khalifs, 237. 



COr^l-ENTS. is 

CHAP. IV. 

Diasohition of the Great Emjnrea of the East and West. 

Empire of Charlemagne, 240. Hungarians, 2-43. Northmen, 244. 
France — Germany — House of Saxony, 246. Italy, 250. England, 
251. Russia, 252. Constantinople, 255. Decline of the Arabian 
Empire — Africa, 256. Decline of the Arabian Empire — Asia, 256. 
Causes of the Decline of the Power of the Khalifs, 261. Gas- 
nevides, 262. Spain, 263. 

CHAP. V. 

Increase of the Papal Power. 

Italy — Normans, 264. Italy — Popes, 269. Italy — Lombard Cities, 
274. Germany — House of Franconia— France, 275. England, 276. 
Spain — Constantinople — Seljookians, 280, First Crusade, 285. 

CHAP. VI. 

The Papal Power at its Greatest Height. 

Italy — Popes, 287. Italy — Lombard Cities, 292. Italy — Naples 
and Sicily — Germany — Swabian Line, 293. France, 298. En- 
gland — Plantagenets, 299. Ireland — Spain, 304. Portugal — Al- 
mohades, 305. Persia — Saladin, 306. Mamelukes — Constantino- 
ple, 309. Crusades, 310. Mongols— Chingis Khan, 315. End of 
the Khalifat at Bagdad, 316. 

CHAP. VIL 

Decline of the Papal Power, and Formation of Great Monarchies. 

Italy — Popes, 317. Italy — Republics, 323. Italy — Naples and Sicily, 
328. Germany, 330. Switzerland — France, 334. England — Plan- 
tagenets, 342. Wars between France and England, 349. Scotland, 
355. Scandinavia, 360. Poland, 361. Hungary — Ottomans, 362. 
Tatars — Timoor, 367. Spain, 371. Portugal, 372. Discovery of 
America, 373. 



PART III. 
MODERN HISTORY. 

CHAP. L 

View of the State of Europe. 

England, 379. France — Germany — Russia, Poland, Scandinavia- 
Switzerland and Savoy, 380. Italy, 383. League of Cambray— 
Spain and Portugal, 384. Turkey, 385. Persia, 386. 

CHAP. IL 

Times of Charles V. 

Accession of Charles V., 389. Reformation, 390. Wars of Charlea 
V. and Francis I., 391. Affairs of Germany, 396. Renewed War 
■with France, 397. Affairs of Germany, 398. England, 402. Spain 
and Portugal — Italy, 403. Denmark and Sweden — Turkey, 407. 

2 



Z CONTENTS- 

CHAP, in. 

Timea of Philip fl. 

Btate of Europe at Philip's Accession, 408. France, 409. Nether- 
lands, 416. England, 422. Portugal, 426. Germany— Poland, 
427. Italy, 428. Turkey, 431. 

CHAP. IV. 

Times of the Thirty Years' War, 
Germany, 432. France, 429. Spain, 443. Portugal — Italy — Eng- 
land—The Civil War, 444. Holland, 448. Russiar— Turkey and 
Persia, 449. 

CHAP. V. 

Timea of Louia XIV. 
France to the Peace of the Pyrenees, 450. England to the Restora- 
tion — Wars till the Peace of Nimeguen, 453. England to the 
Revolution, 459. Wars to the Peace of Ryswiek, 460. England — 
Spanish Succession, 462. North of Europe — Peter the Great — 
Charles XII., 471. England, 472. 

CHAP. VI. 

Period of Comparative Repose, 

England — Quadruple Alliance, 475. Russia — Turkish Wars, 477. 
Persia — Nadir Shah, 478. 

CHAP. VII. 
Timea of Frederic II. 

Silesian Wars, 481. England, 487. Russia — Seven Years' War, 488. 
Suppression of the Jesuits, 493. First Partition of Poland, 494. 
Turkish War — American Revolutionary War, 495. India — Persia, 
603. 

CHAP. VIII. 

Times of the French Revolution and Empire. 

State of Europe, 506. French Revolution, 511. Europe to the Peace 
of Campo Formio, 515. Affairs to the Assumption of the chief 
power by Bonaparte, 516. Affairs till the Peace of Amiens, 518. 
Affairs of Europe to the Treaty of Tilsit, 521. Affairs to the Treaty 
of Vienna, 522. Progress of the Peninsular War, 524. Invasion 
of Russia, and Fall of Napoleon, 527. 

CHAP. IX. 

Times of the Restoration and Louia Philippe. 

State of Europe, 536. France, 539. Great Britain, 551. Spain, 
554. Portugal, 559. Italy, 564.* Germany and Prussia, 567. 
Netherland, 568. Austria, 570. Russia, 573. Sweden, 574. 
Turkey, 577. Greece, 578. United States, 582. Mexico and 
Central America, 590. South America, 591. 

CHAP. X. 

Times of the Continental Revolufion». 

France, 596. Great Britain, 598. Italy, 601. (^rmany and Prussia 
— Austria, 602. Russia and Turkey— The United States, 605, 



HISTORY OF THE WORLD. 



PART I. 
ANCIENT HISTORY. 

CHAP I. 

INTRODUCTION. 



Of Man. 

There are different races of our species occupying the vari- 
ous portions of the earth, and distinguished from each other 
in corporeal structure and in mental development. These nu- 
merous varieties are, by the ablest investigators, reduced to 
three principal stems, viz. the Caucasian or Europeo-Arabic, 
the Mongol, and the Negro or Ethiopic. The first contains 
the people of Asia north and south of the great mountain 
range of Caucasus and its continuation to the Ganges, of Eu- 
rope, and of Northern Africa; the second, the people of East- 
ern Asia and of America ; the third, the tribes with woolly 
hair and sable skin that people the African continent. Yet 
many tribes can with difficulty be brought under any one of 
these divisions: the endless variety of Nature is as apparent 
in the human race as in the animal and vegetal)le kingdoms. 

Original Seat of Man. 

It is, perhaps, a useless inquiry to search after the rejrion 
in which man was first placed, the paradise of his first days 
of innocence and happiness. The only historic clew we pos- 
sess are the names of the four rivers, said in the Hebrew re- 
cords to have watered the land in which the progenitors of 
the human race dwelt. But as no four rivers can be found 
on the present surface of the earth afi^reeing in all points 
with those mentioned by Moses, our safest course is to con- A^ 

fine ourselves to the inquiry after the region where those who J>^ 

escaped the great inundation which overwhelmed the earth, 
resumed their destined course of life and occupation. 

The general opinion, founded on the literal interpretation 
of Scripture, has long been, that at the time of the flood all 

15 



16 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART L 

mfinkind perished, save Noah and liis family. Some, how- 
ever, contend, that the words of the inspired writer are not 
to be taken so strictly, and that as his information was des- 
tined for a particular poidon of mankind, it may have been 
only intended to instruct them in the history of the race to 
which they belonged, while that of other races may have 
been passed over in silence. Hence they would infer that we 
are not precluded by the Mosaic writings from supposing, that 
at the time of the great inundation other portions of mankind 
may have saved themselves in different manners and places. 
They therefore look to the higher regions of the earth, and 
find three elevated ranged m the neighborhood of the three 
distinct stems into which we find mankind divided. The lofty 
range extending from the Black Sea to the east of India has 
been at all times regarded as being, either itself or the lands 
south of it, the original seat of the Caucasian race. Still 
more east, beyond Tibet and the desert of Gobi, rises another 
range, regarded as the original seat of the Mongol race which 
dwells around it : and the Mountains of the Moon and their 
branches are thought to point out the primitive abodes of the 
Negro race. America, it is probable, was not, till long after 
adapted for the abode of man. 

These, however, are all questions of curiosity rather than 
of historical importance. At the dawn of all history we find 
the various races of mankind distinct, and no history informs 
us of the origin of the differences. We have therefore only 
to consider them in their separate states, or as intermingled 
with and affecting each other. 

Original State of Man. 

Another point which has given occasion to a good deal of 
ingenious conjecture, is the original state of mankind. Philo- 
sophers, on surveying the human race in its different situa- 
tions, have traced out four distinct states. — those of the mere 
fruit and plant-eater, the hunter, the herdsman, and the cul- 
tivator, — and have generally inferred that man has pro- 
gressively passed through all these states, commencing at the 
lowest. Yet this is still but mere conjecture, unsupported by 
any historic evidence. No tribe has ever yet been found to 
civilize itself; instruction and unprovement always come to 
it from abroad ; and experience would rather lead to the in- 
ference, that the savage is a degeneration from the civilized 
life. In the very earliest history, that of the Bible, we find 
the pastoral and agricultural life coexisting almost from the 
commencement of the world; at all periods we find man 
possessed of the useful and necessary arts, the master of 



;hap. l introduction. 17 

flocks and herds, the employer of the spade, the plow, and 
the sickle. It is in vain we seek for commencement, — all is 
progress. In imagination, we may conceive a time, when 
the human race was in the lowest degree of culture ; but, on 
inquiry, we everywhere meet the arts, meet men collected 
into societies, meet property, legislation, and government. 

It may perhaps be collected from the testimony of the 
sacred Scriptures, and from the deductions of philosophy, that 
man has always existed in society, and that the first societies 
were families, the first form of government patriarchal : and 
the following may be stated as the most probable hypothesis ; 
namely, that man commenced his existence in the social state 
under the mild and gentle form of government denominated 
patriarchal ; that his first nourishment was the fruits of trees 
and plants, which ripened in abundance for the supply of his 
wants in some temperate and fertile region of the earth, 
possibly that at the south of Caucasus, or where now extends 
the paradisal vale of Cashmeer ; that gradually he became a 
keeper of flocks and herds, and a cultivator of corn; that 
families spread and combined ; and that from their union 
arose monarchies, the most ancient form of extended civil 
government. 

It is in this last state that we propose to consider mankmd, 
and to trace the great and important events that have taken 
place among the various stems and branches of the human 
race; to show how, beneath the guiding energy of the 
Creator and Ruler, the great machine of human society has 
proceeded on its way, at times advancing, at times apparently 
retrograding, in the patli of perfection and happiness. And the 
final result of our view of the deeds and destinies of man 
will, we trust, be a firm conviction in the mind of every 
reader that private and public felicity is the result alone of 
good education, wise laws, and just government, and that all 
power which is not based on equity is unstable and transient. 

It is to the Caucasian race that the history of the v/orld 
must mainly confine itself, for with that race has originated 
almost all that ennobles and dignifies mankind: it is the 
chief depository of literature, and the great instructor of 
philosophical, political, and religious systems. We shall re- 
strict ourselves, therefore, chiefly to the history of that race, 
briefly premising views of the state and character of the 
^Ethiopians, the Mongols, and the Indians. 

jEthiopians. 

We have already observed, that under this name are in- 
} uded all the mhabitants of Africa whose bodily conforma- 
2* 



18 HISTORY Of THE WORLD. PART L 

tion does not prove them to be of the Caucasian race. The 
indefiniteness of the term JEthiopian employed by the Greeks, 
and applied by them to all people of a dark complexion, and 
the similar indefiniteness of the Hebrew Cush^ prevent our 
being able positively to say whether the obscure traditions of 
the JEthiopian power extending along the Mediterranean to 
the straits of Gades, and of that people having, under their 
king Tearcho, made themselves so formidable to the inhabit- 
ants of the coasts of the iEgean, are to be understood of a 
purely Negro empire, or of, what is much more probable, a 
state like that of Egypt, where the lower orders of society 
were of Negro, the higher and dominant classes of Caucasian 
race. Within the historic period of both ancient and modern 
times, the Ethiopian race only appears as furnishing slaves 
for the service of the Caucasian, to whom it has been always 
as inferior in mental power as in bodily configuration. Though 
modern travel has discovered within the torrid wastes of 
Africa large communities ruled over by Negro princes, and 
a knowledge of many of the useful arts, yet civilization and 
policy have- never reared their heads in the ungenial clime. 
As literature has never been theirs, whatever revolutions 
may have taken place among them are buried in oblivion, and 
they claim no station of eminence in the history of the world. 

The Chinese. 

The Mongols stand far higher in the scale of intellect and 
in importance than the ^Ethiopians. As we proceed, we shall 
find them striking terror into Europe by their arms and their 
numbers. One nation of this race, the Chinese, has long 
been an object of curiosity to the western world, from its ex- 
tent of empire and the singularity of its social institutions. 

The Chinese empire occupies an extent of surface equal to 
that of all Europe, containing within it every variety of soil 
and climate, and natural production ; thus rendering it in 
itself perfectly independent of all foreign aid. In its social 
institutions it has presented through all periods a model of 
the primitive form of government, the patriarchal, and an 
exemplification of the evil of continuing it beyond its just 
and necessary period. In China all is at a stand-still ; suc- 
ceeding ages add not to the knowledge of those that have gone 
before ; no one must presume to be wiser than his fathers : 
around the Son of Heaven, as they designate their emperor, 
assemble the learned of tlie land as his council; so in the 
provinces the learned in their several degrees around the 
governor; and laws and rules are passed from the highest 
down to the lowest, to be by them given to the people. Every 



CHAP. 1. iNTRODUCTiON. 21 

even the \nost minute, circumstance of common life is reou 
lated by law. It matters not, for example, what may be the 
wc^a.ltJi of an individual, he must wear the dress and build his 
house after the mode prescribed by ancient regulations. In 
China every thing bears the stamp of antiquity; immovable- 
ness seems to be characteristic of the nation ; every imple- 
ment retains its primitive rude form ; every invention has 
stopped at the first step. The gradual progress towards per- 
fection of the Caucasian race is unknown in China ; the plow 
is still dra\vn by men ; the written characters of their mono- 
syllabic language stand for ideas, not for simple sounds ; and 
the laborious task of learning to read occupies the time that 
might be employed in the acquisition of valuable knowledge. 
Literature has been at all periods cultivated by a nation 
where learning (such as it is) is the only road to honor and 
dignity, and books beginning with the five Kings of Con-fu- 
tsee, which equal the four Vedas of India in the honor in 
which they are held, have at all times been common in this 
empire. A marked feature in the Chinese character is the 
absence of imagination : all is the product of cold reason. 
The Kings speak not of a God, and present no system of re- 
ligion: every thing of that nature in China came from India. 
The uncertain history of China ascends to about 2500 
years before the Christian era ; the certain history commences 
about eight centuries before Christ. According to Chi- 
nese tradition, the founders of the state, a hundred families 
in number, descended from the mountains of Kulcum, on the 
lake of Khukhunor, north-west of China; and hence the 
middle provinces of Chensee, Leong, Honan, &:c. were the 
first seats of their cultivation. These provinces are in the 
same climate as Greece and Italy. Twenty-two dynasties of 
princes are enumerated as having governed China to the 
present day, the actual emperor being the fifth monarch of 
the twenty-second or Tai Tsin dynasty. Of these dynasties, 
one of the most remarkable is the Song, which ruled over 
the southern empire at the time China was divided into two, 
and fell beneath the arms of the Yver or mingled nomadic 
tribes, led to conquest by the descendants of Chingis Khan. 
This line, which reigned from A. D. 960 to 1280, distinguish- 
ed itself by the encouragement of the arts and sciences ; it 
cultivated relations with Japan, fostered trade and commerce, 
and in all things went contrary to the established maxims of 
Chinese policy, and while it lasted the empire bloomed be- 
neath its sway ; but the hordes of the desert levelled its glo- 
ries, and its fate has been ever since held up as an awful 
warning to those who venture to depart even a haii-'s breadth 



22 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART J 

from the ancient manners. At an earlier period, under the 
dynasty of Tsin (248 — 206 B. C), China first received reli- 
gion from India ; but the missionaries were not artful or pru- 
dent enough to adapt it to Chinese maxuns of state, and they 
were unsuccessful in the contest between them and the, 
learned. At a later period, when the Buddhism of India had 
become the Lamaism of Tibet, it entered China as the reli- 
gion of Foe, and by the worldly prudence of its bonzes or 
priests, succeeded in gaining a favorable reception and be- 
coming the religion of the state. Every thing that hopes for 
success in this country must fall in with the national charac- 
ter. China has often been overcome, and its reigning dynasty 
changed ; but the manners and institutions of China remain 
unaltered, as different from those of the Caucasian race aa 
the features of the Chinese face are from those of the Euro- 
pean. 

India. 

From the Chinese, a nation of cold reason, almost no reli- 
gion, monosyllabic, unharmonious language, and literature 
full of events and valuable matter, we pass to their neighbors 
of India, whom every thing but color indicates to belong tc 
the same family with the Europeans. Here we find glowing 
fancy, and in Brahmanism a luxuriant system of religion, a 
majestic and richly inflected language, and a literature full 
to exuberance of the highest poetry. But India has no his- 
tory or chronology of its own, and it is in the time of the 
Persian kings that it first appears in the history of the world. 
Yet the testimony of antiquity, its proximity to the original 
land of the Caucasian race, and the primitive character of 
its social institutions, prove it to be one of the most ancient 
nations of the earth. 

I In India, religion and priestly influence have effected what 
law and tradition have produced in China — the absolute pros- 
tration of the intellect of the nation. The system of castes 
sets a bar to all ambition and to all energy. No development 
of mind can take place where every man's station in life is 
immutably marked out for him. \ The nation presents at the 
present day the same spectacle which excited the wonder of 
the Greeks who accompanied Alexander ; an immense, gentle, 
and peaceful population ; abundance of wealth ; all the useful, 
necessary, and ornamental arts of life ; a manifold, intricate 
system of religion, abounding in rites and ceremonies, many 
of them of the most lascivious character. 

Tiike China, India is an instance of the fatal effect of check- 
ing the free development of mind: here, too, every thing ir 



CHAP. I. CENTRAL AND WESTERN ASIA 23 

stationary. The love of country is a feeling unknown to the 
breast of the inhabitants, and India has b€ en at all periods 
the easy prey of every invader v^^hom its wealth attracted. 
Omitting- the fabulous expeditions of Sesostris and Seniiramis, 
the earliest account we have of a conquest of any part of this 
country is of that by Cyrus and Darius L, king-s of Persia ; 
next Alexander the Great with ease overthrew all that op- 
posed him, and, but for the refusal of his troops, would have 
planted his standards on the banks of the Ganges. Seleucus 
Nicator ruled over the provinces conquered by Alexander, 
reached in conquest the banks of the Jumnah, and subdued a 
large portion of Bengal. When the feeble successors of Se- 
leucus had lost their power over other subject nations, their 
vicegerents were still obeyed during a period of 60 years by 
a great part of India. A hundred and twenty years after 
the death of Alexander, Antiochus the Great invaded and 
conquered a considerable portion of India ; and when he was 
overcome by the Romans, all his possessions west of the Indus 
fell to Euthydemus, the Grecian sovereign of Bactria, and 
India cheerfully obeyed him. He was unable to effect the 
succession of his son Demetrius in Bactria ; but over the In- 
dian provinces that prince reigned without opposition. Eu- 
cratides, the fifth of the Graeco-Bactrian kings, reunited to 
Bactria the Indian possessions, and every succeeding reigning 
line hi Persia had dominions in India, till it was eventually 
overrun and occupied by Mohammedan conquerors. For the 
last thousand years it has been the prey of every foreign 
spoiler. Thus India seems destined never to enjoy national 
independence: her countless millions doomed for ever to bow 
beneath a foreign sceptre, she stands an instructive monu- 
ment of the evils resulting from fettered intellect and priestly 
dominion. 



CHAP. II. 

THE ANCIENT STATES OF CENTRAL AND WESTERN ASIA. 

Bactria. 

According to the traditions of hoary antiquity preserved 
in the sacred books of the Parsees, and in the Shah Nameh, 
the immortal poem of Ferdoosee, there existed in the most 
remote ages, with sacerdotal institutions akin to those of India, 
a mighty and extensive empire in Bactria or Eastern Persia. 
Grecian writers confirm this account, and it is farther proved 



24 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I, 

by fhe route of the Caucasian race, who, in their progress 
along the mountains, must have been attracted by these fer- 
tile regions, abounding in every production, protected by 
lofty impassable mountains to the north, and bordering on the 
realms of India and Babylonia. The branch of the Caucasian 
stem, called the Indo-Persian race, spread over Iran, the 
' country between Babylonia and India. Its chief seat was 
Bactria. Here, according to Persian tradition, ruled Cayu- 
marath, the first of men, or of kings, and his descendants, 
till Jemsheed was overthrown by the Aramaean Zohak. The 
system of religion named from Zoroaster prevailed in Bac- 
tria, and the sacerdotal caste stood in rights and privileges 
nearly on a par with the Bramins of India, who, probably, 
possessed originally a similar institution. The idolatrous 
Aramsean priesthood united itself with that of Bactria; but 
when the Aramaean or Babylonian dominion sank, and the 
Iranian revived in the person of Feridoon, the old religion 
recovered its dominion. Changes of dynasty affected it not ; 
it passed to the Modes and Persians, and still was flourishing 
when the disciples of Mohammed extinguished it in blood ; 
and it yet lingers among the Parsees of India, the descend- 
ants of those. who sought refuge in that country from perse- 
cution. But the simple religion of Zoroaster, which wor- 
shipped under the emblem of light and fire the Author of life 
and happiness, had not the debasing effecte of the intricate 
idolatry and metaphysics of India ; and if Iran fell beneath 
foreign conquerol-s, the fault was not in her system of re- 
ligion. 

Babylon and Assyria. 

We now begin to tread on more solid ground, for in the 
earliest portion of the far most credible ancient history, that 
of the Hebrews, we observe a recognition of the empires of 
Babylon and Assyria, From them, too, we may infer, that 
Babylon was the more * ancient, for the city of that name is 
mentioned at a time while the Hebrews were still in the no- 
madic state. We hear not till long after of Nineveh, the 
Assyrian capital on the Tigris. 

The Babylonians dwelt on the Tigris and the Lower Eu- 
phrates, and their industry had made their land the garden 
of Asia. They were a peaceful people, as is shown by their 
manufactures, and their provisions for watering their lands, 
Herodotus describes them as a luxurious trafficking people, 
fond of splendid dress and ornaments. Various dynasties of 
kings of the surrounding nations are related to have ruled ip 
Babylon. This wealthy state must have been at all tunes ex 




25 



tHAP. II. CENTRAL AND WESTERN ASIA. 27 

posed to the incursions of the nomadic tribes that surrounded 
it, and sometimes conquered by them. The city is stated to 
have been built in the most remote ages by the god Bel, and 
to have been enlarged and adorned by Semiramis, probably 
also a mythic personage. In the historic period, we find it 
farther improved and adorned by Nebuchadnezzar and the 
queen Nitocris. The reign of Nebuchadnezzar was the 
most brilliant period of Babylon. He ruled from the foot of 
Caucasus to the deserts of Libya. Judsea, Phoenicia, Egypt, 
all the tribes of the desert, did homage to his power. But 
the glory was transient: in the reign of his son the Babylo- 
nian dominion sank, never to rise, beneath the arms of the 
Medes and Persians. 

The Assyrian empire on the Tigris and the Upper Eu- 
phrates, rose much later than the Babylonian, which it sub- 
dued, but which under the father of Nebuchadnezzar cast off 
the yoke, and attained the power we have just described. Of 
the Assyrian history little is known. 

A caste of priests named Chaldeans, distinguished for their 
knowledge of the order and courses of the heavenly bodies, 
the objects of Babylonian worship, was to be found here ; but 
the early establishment of despotism permitted not a division 
of the people into any other castes. These Chaldeans were 
divided into several orders under a head appointed by the 
king. Birth was not a necessary qualification for admittance 
into their body. We find (as in the case of Daniel) Jews 
placed in the highest rank among them. They derived their 
support from lands assigned to them. The nature of the oc- 
cupations of the Babylonians made a race of men of import- 
ance, who pretended to a knowledge of the ways of the g;ods, 
who measured the land, marked the seasons, and announced 
the hours of good and evil fortune : yet almost all their boasted 
wisdom was mere jugglery and deceit. 

Egypt* 

The valley watered by the Nile, and inclosed between the 
desert on the west, and barren mountains on the east, was 
the seat of one of the earliest and most renowned empires of 
which we have any record remaining. A branch of the Cau- 
casian race, it would appear, crossed the strait of Bab-el-Man- 
deb. It mastered the JEthiopians whom it met, and founded 
an empire on the system of castes in Nubia; then advanced 
with the stream, and established that of Upper Egypt ; and, 

* Egypt, though properly in Africa, has been included in this chapter, to 
avoid needless subdivision. 



28 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

labtly, spread over Lower Egypt and tlie Delta "now formed 
by the Nile. But this was long anterior to the commence- 
ment of history. So early as the days of Abranam, Lower 
Egypt was the seat of a rich, flourishing, and civilized state. 

The turn of mind of this branch of the Caucasian stem was 
similar to that of the branch which established itself in India. 
Hence some have needlessly supposed that one country was 
colonized by the other. Here, as in India, the priestly caste 
enjoyed high power and privileges. They were the deposi- 
tories of all arts and sciences; they not only were the di- 
rectors of the employments of life, but possessed the awful 
office of judges of the dead, who were brought before their 
tribunal ere consigned to the tomb ; and by numerous prac- 
tices and ceremonies, they for ever kept the idea and the fear 
of death before the eyes of the people. Their own religious 
system, known to the initiated alone, was perfectly simple : 
what they taught the people in symbol and figure was com- 
plex, obscene, and degrading. Independence was secured to 
the sacerdotal order by the immunity of their lands from im- 
posts. 

Yet priestly sway never attained the same height here as 
in India. Egypt was a conquered country, and numerous 
tribes of nomades and other classes, who never completely 
amalgamated with the conquerors, roamed the land, some- 
times independent, sometimes obedient Hence the king was 
in a great measure independent of the priests. The history 
of Joseph informs us, that the king had a fifth of the produce 
of the land, and, as in the case of this minister, could ap- 
point a stranger and an uninitiated person to the highest office 
of the state, and give him in marriage the daughter of the 
high priest. We therefore read of internal tumults and for- 
eign wars, the fabulous expeditions of Sesostris, the real 
campaigns against Judsea and more distant powers. Arabian 
and Nubian monarchs have ruled over Egypt ; it fell before 
the Babylonian, Persian, Grecian, and Roman power, yet the 
castes, as in India, subsisted through every shock. 

Where the system of castes prevails, the inferior castes 
are always of a peaceful, industrious character. Each per- 
son's walk of life being marked out for him, he pursues it 
with the regularity and mechanism of mere matter. All we 
learn of ancient Egypt corresponds with this principle : the 
narrowness and fertility of the land caused an excessive pop- 
ulation ; agriculture could employ but a small portion of the 
people ; the sedentary arts were therefore cultivated to a 
great extent, and the division of labor was carried almost be- 
yond any thing similar in modern times. The accounts we 



CHAP. 11. CENTRAL AND WESTERN ASIA, 29 

have of emigrations from Egypt are obscure, and many of 
them not very credible. The plan devised for preventing- the 
evils of over-populousness was, to accustom the lower orders 
to a spare diet, and employ them on the construction of huge 
edifices, destined for tombs, or the temples of religion. Hence 
the pyramids and excavated temples which still excite the 
wonder of the world, and prove what may be effected by thfe 
aid of the simplest machinery, with time, numbers, and per- 
severance. 

The knowledge of the Egyptians has been much over- 
rated. The great trait of a sacerdotal period is everywhere 
to be discerned. Every thing advanced to a certain point of 
perfection ; there stopped, never to advance, but rather to 
recede. It is remarked, that in design and execution the more 
ancient monuments exceed the later. 

Phcenicia. 

A portion of the Aramaean race was settled on tht Persian 
Gulf It was given to trade and commerce, and settled a 
colony on the coast of Syria. These colonists were named 
the Phcenicians ; their chief city was Sidon, and they after- 
wards built Tyre on an island near the coast. Their manu- 
factures, especially of glass, were celebrated from the most 
ancient times. While surrounded by nomadic tribes, they 
seem to have made little advances in wealth and power, 
though they had extended their settlements to some distance 
inland. But when the Israelites took possession of Canaan, 
and applied themselves to agriculture, the trade of the Phoe- 
nicians rapidly increased ; their ships visited the isles and 
coasts of the ^gean, and the distant ports of Italy and Spain. 
Numerous colonies, of which Carthage was chief, were es- 
tablished by them. In their impregnable island-city they 
could bid defiance to the might of Israel, Egypt, and Babylon. 
Luxury flourished in this city, whose " merchants were 
princes :" their religion was bloody and cruel, their form of 
government monarchical. 

Philistines. 

This people, celebrated for Rieir wars with the Israelites, 
dwelt on a small strip of sea-coast south of the Tyrians. They 
were originally, it is thought, a colony from Egypt. They 
possessed five cities under the government of five princes, 
and confederated together for mutual defence. Trade and 
piracy were their chief means of subsistence. Their long and 
obstinate resistance against the arms of the Israelites testifies 
3* 



30 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

their valor and love of independence. A seafaring people, 
the chief object of their worship was a sea-god, Dagon. 

Arabia. 

From the earliest dawn of history the Arabs have led the 
nomadic life, to which the nature of their country has des- 
tined them. The numerous tribes, under the government of 
their sheikhs and emirs, roam the desert apart — now in friend- 
ship, now in hostility. The camel and the horse are their 
companions and support. The strangers who penetrate their 
wilds hav,e always been regarded as lawful prizes. Under 
tlie various names of Edomites, Ishmaelites, Midianites, &c. 
we find their tribes in friendly or hostile relations with the 
nation of Israel, with whom many of them acknowledged a 
kindred. Their religious worship was chiefly directed to the 
heavenly bodies. 

Israelites. 

At a very remote period of antiquity, when the sacerdotal 
caste in Babylonia had begun to spread idolatry even among 
the nomadic tribes of the land, a man named Abraham, dis- 
tinguished by wealth, wisdom, and probity, in obedience to 
the commands of the Deity, quitted the land of his fathers, 
and journeyed with his family and his herds towards the land 
of Canaan. His faith in the only God, and his obedience to 
his will, were here rewarded by increasing wealth and num- 
bers. His son and grandson continued the same nomadic 
life in Palestine which Abraham and his fathers had led. By 
a surprising turn of fortune, one of the sons of Jacob, the 
grandson of Abraham, became vizier to the king of Egypt: 
he brought his father and family to that country, and a dis- 
trict in the north-east of Egypt was assigned to them by the 
king for the sustenance of themselves and their flocks and 
herds. 

During 430 years their numbers increased exceedingly. A 
new dynasty now filled the Egyptian throne, and they feared 
the power of a numerous people attached to the former line, 
and dwelling in the key of the land towards Asia. They 
sought, therefore, to change their mode of life, and by impos- 
ing heavy tasks upon them to check their increase, and grad 
ually to wear them out. 

During this period of oppression Moses was born. The 
Egyptian monarch had ordered all the male children of the 
Israelites to be destroyed at the birth ; ard the mother of 
Moses, after concealing him for some time, was obliged to 
expose him. The daughter of the king found"him, and reared 



CHAP. II CENTRAL AND WESTERN ASIA. 33 

him as her own, As he grew up, he was instructed in the 
secret wisdom of the priests ; but neither knowledge, nor the 
honors and splendor of the court, could make him behold with 
indifference the state of his native people. He mourned over 
their oppression, and panted to behold them in their former 
happy independence. 

Seeing an Egyptian ill-treat an Israelite, he slew him ; and, 
fraring the vengeance of the king, fled to Arabia, where he 
led a shepherd's life, near Sinai, in the service of an Arab 
sheikh. While here, he received the command of God to 
lead his people out of Egypt : he returned thither, and, by 
performing many wondrous deeds, compelled the reluctant 
monarch to let his slaves depart. But Pharaoh repented, 
pursued, and he and his whole army perished in the waves 
of the Red Sea. 

During their long residence in Egypt, the Israelites had 
gradually been passing from the nomadic to the agricultural 
life, and had contracted much of the impure religious ideas 
and licentious manners of the Egyptians. They were now 
to be brought back to the simple religion of their fathers, and 
a form of government established among them calculated to 
preserve them in the purity of their simple faith. It pleased 
the Deity to be himself, under the name of Jehovah, the King 
of Israel, and their civil institutions were to resemble those 
of the country they had left, freed from all that might be pre- 
judicial to the great object in view — that of making them a 
nation of monotheistic faith. 

In the midst of lightning and thunder, while Sinai re- 
echoed to the roar, the first simple elements of their future 
law were presented to the children of Israel. No images, 
no hieroglyphics, were admitted into the religion now given : 
ceremonies of significant import were annexed, to employ the 
minds and engage the attention of a rude people. There was 
a sacerdotal caste, to whom the direction of all matters relat- 
ing to religion and law (which were in this government the 
same) was intrusted : but they had no dogmas or mysteries 
wherewith to fetter the minds of the people ; and being as- 
signed for their maintenance, not separate lands, but a por- 
tion of the produce of the whole country, their interest would 
lead them to stimulate the people to agriculture, and thus 
carry into effect the object of the constitution. As priests, 
judges, advocates, writers, and physicians, they were of im- 
portant service in the community, and fully earned the tenth 
of the produce which was allotted to them. Their division 
into priests and Levites was a wise provision against that 
too sharp distinction which in Egypt and India prevailed be- 



34 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. f ART I.. 

tween the sacerdotal and the other castes. The Levites, being 
assigned some lands, formed a connecting link between the 
priests and the cultivators. 

Ag-riculture being the destination of the Israelites, trade 
was discouraged ; for the fairs and markets were held in the 
neighborhood of the heathen temples. But to compensate 
them for the prohibition against sharing in the joyous festivi- 
ties of the surrounding nations, feasts were held three times 
in each year to commemorate their emancipation, the giving 
of the law, and their abode in the desert. At these festivals, 
all Israel was required to attend, that the bonds of brother- 
hood might be kept up among the tribes by participation in 
social enjoyment. 

Thus, many years before Con-fu-tsee gave the Kings to 
the Chinese, long ere any lawgiver arose in Greece, Moses, 
directed by God, gave to Israel, in the wastes of Arabia, a 
constitution, the wonder of succeeding ages, and ever memo- 
rable for the influence it has exerted on the minds and msti- 
tutions of a large and important portion of mankind. 

During forty years, till all the degenerate race who had 
left Egypt had died off*, Moses detained the Israelites in the 
deserts of Arabia, accustoming them to obey their law, and 
preparing them for the conquest of the land assigned as' their 
possession. At the end of that period their inspired legislator 
led them to the borders of the promised land, and having ap- 
pointed Joshua to be his successor, he ascended a lofty moun- 
tain to take a view of the country he was not to enter : he 
there died in the 120th year of his age. Under the guidance 
of Joshua, Israel passed the Jordan ; the God of Moses was 
with them, and inspired them with valor to subdue their foes. 
A speedy conquest gave them the land. No fixed govern- 
ment had been appointed ; the people gradually fell from the 
service of Jehovah to worship the idols of the surrounding 
nations ; and Jehovah gave them up into the power of their 
enemies. At times there arose among them heroes, denomi- 
nated judges, who, inspired with patriotism and zeal for the 
law, aroused the slumbering tribes, and led them to victory. 
Then, too, arose that noble order of prophets who, in heaven- 
ni spired strains of poetry, exalted the Mosaic law, and im- 
pressed its precepts, its rewards, and threats, on the minds of 
the people. 

After the time of the judges, the temporal and spiritual 

dignities were, contrary to th.e intention of the lawgiver, 

B. c. united, and the high-priest exercised the sovereign power 

*156. This lasted but a short time: in the person of the upright 

Samuel, a prophet, the temporal was again divided from tlw 




Suraj-ud-Dowlah and his Sons. 



35 



CHAP. II. CENTRAL AND WESTERN ASIA. 37 

spiritual dignity. The sons of Samuel trod not in the steps 
of their virtuous father. The prospect of being governed by 
them, and the want of a military leader to command them in 
their virars with the surrounding nations, made the people call g ^ 
on Samuel to give them a king. He complied with their 1095 
wishes, warning them of the consequences of their desire, 
and appointed Saul. This monarch was victorious in war ; 
but he disobeyed the voice of the prophet, and misfortune 
ever after pursued him. It pleased Jehovah to take the king- 
dom from him, and Samuel anointed the youthful David to 
occupy his place. Saul was seized with a melancholy derange- 
ment of intellect. David, who was his son-in-law, won the af- 
fections of the powerful tribe of Judah ; but while Saul lived, 
he continued in his allegiance, though his sovereign sought his 
life. At length, Saul and his elder and more worthy sons fell 1055 
in battle against the Philistines, and the tribe of Judah called 
their young hero to the vacant throne. The other tribes ad- 
hered during seven years to the remaining son of Saul. His 
death, by the hands of assassins, gave all Israel to David. 1^48. 

David was the model of an Oriental prince, handsome in his 
person, valiant, mild, just, and generous, humble before his 
God, and zealous in his honor, a lover of music and poetry, 
himself a poet. Successful in war, he reduced beneath his 
sceptre all the countries from the borders of Egypt to the 
mountains whence the Euphrates springs. The king of Tyre 
was his ally ; he had ports on the Red Sea, and the wealth of 
commerce flowed during his reign into Israel. He fortified 
and adorned Jerusalem, which .he made the seat of govern- 
ment. Glorious prospects of extended empire, and of the 
diffusion of the pure religion of Israel, and of happy times, 
floated before the mind of the prophet-king. 

The kingdom of Israel was hereditary ; but the monarch 
might choose his successor among his sons. Solomon, sup- 
ported by Nathan, the great prophet of those days, and by 
the affection- of his fiither, was nominated to succeed. The 
qualities of a magnificent Eastern monarch met in the son of 
David. He, too, was a poet ; his taste was great and splendid ; 
he summoned artists from Tyre (for Israel had none,) and, 
with the collected treasure of his father, erected at Jerusa- 
lem a stately temple to the God of Israel. He first gave the 
nation a queen, in the daughter of the king of Egypt, for 
whom he built a particular palace. He brought horses and 
chariots out of Egypt to increase the strength and the glory 
of his empire. Trade and commerce deeply engaged the 
thoughts of this politic prince : with the Tyrians, his subjects 
visited the ports of India and eastern Africa : he built the 
4 



38 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART L 

city of Tadmor or Palmyra in the desert, six days' journey 
from Babylon, and one from the Euphrates — a point of union 
for the traders of various nations. Wealth of every kind 
flowed in upon Jerusalem ; but it alone derived advantage 
from the splendor of the monarch: the rest of Israel was 
heavily taxed. 

On the death of Solomon, the tribes called upon his son to 

B. c. reduce their burdens : he haughtily refused, and ten of the 

975. tribes revolted and chose another king. An apparently wise 
a really false, policy, made the kings of Israel set up the sym- 
bolical mode of worship practised in Egypt. Judah, too, 
wavered in her allegiance to Jehovah. A succession of bold, 
lionest, inspired prophets, reproved, warned, encouraged the 
kindred nations, and a return to the service of the true God 
was always rewarded by victory and better times. At length 

721. the ten tribes, by their vices and idolatry, lost the divine pro- 
tection : they were conquered and carried out of their own 
country by the king of Assyria, and their land given to 
strangers. A similar fate befell the kingdom of Judah : the 
house of David declined, and the king of Babylon, Nebuchad- 

585. nezzar, carried away the people to Babylonia. On the fall of 
that state, seventy years afterwards, Cyrus king of Persia 
allowed to return to their own land a people whose faith bore 
some resemblance to the simple religion of the Persians, and 
whose country secured him an easy access to Egypt. Restored 
to their country, the Israelites, now called Jews, became as 
distinguished for their obstinate attachment to their law as 
they had been before for their facility to desert it. But the 
purity and simplicity of their faith were gone; they now 
mingled with it various dogmas which they had learned 
during their captivity. The schools of the prophets, whence 
in the old times had emanated such lofty inspiration, simple 
piety, and pure morals, were at an end ; sects sprang up 
among them, and the haughty, subtle, trifle-loving Pharisees, 
the wordly-minded Sadducees, and the simple, contemplative 
Essenes, misunderstood and misinterpreted the pure ennobling 
precepts of the Mosaic law. 

Medes and Persians. 

In the west of Asia the ancient sacerdotal constitutions had 
been now almost wholly abolished. To them succeeded des- 
potism ; and from the erection of the first great Assyrian and 
Babylonian monarchies to the present day, the same appear- 
ance has been repeated with little alteration. One people has 
constantly succeeded another in the dominion over the lands 
between the Indus and the Mediterranean. So long as its 



CHAP. n. CENTRAL AND WESTERN ASIA. 39 

military virtue has remained unenervated by luxury and 
pleasure, it has retained its sway : each dynasty has sustained 
itself till it sank in sloth, and a bold and powerful usurper 
tumbled it from the throne for his own descendants to un- 
derg-o a similar destiny. 

The Assyrian power flourished and ruled over Asia. In the 
country south of the Caspian, named Media, the people, as 
did Israel in the days of Samuel, called for a king- ; but for a 
judge, not a warrior. Dejoces, distinguished for his wisdom 
and justice, was the first monarch : his grandson Cyaxares 
was allied to the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, and be- 
neath their united efforts, Nineveh, the Assyrian capital, and 
with it the power of the empire, fell. At this period the 
Scythians spread their swarms over Lesser Asia, Iran, Syria, 
and even Palestine. The king of Media freed Asia from 
their destructive hordes. In Lesser Asia there had been 
hitherto numerous little states, attached to temples of dif- 
ferent gods; at these temples were held fairs and markets, 
and they were all closely connected with each other. At the 
period of the Scythian invasion these states were dissolved, 
and the kingdoms of Cilicia, Phrygia, and Lydia, were formed 
from them. Of the history of the two former we are totally 
ignorant. The two first dynasties of the Lydians, the Atya- b. c 
des and the Heracleides, are mythic : the history of Gyges, 730 
the first king of the Mermnade dynasty, is in part fable. In 
his time began the connexion between the Greeks and 
Lydians, who differed not much from each other in manners 
and religion. His successor, Ardys, warred with the Grecian 
colonies planted on the coast of Asia before there was any 
extensive monarchy in Asia Minor ; and the Cimmerians, a 
horde from the Black Sea, poured over Lydia and Phrygia, 
and possessed them during the reign of his successor, Sadyat- 
tes. Alyattes, the next king, drove the Cimmerians from 
Lesser Asia at the time that Cyaxares expelled the Scythians 
from his dominions. The Lydian monarch ruled Lesser Asia, 
the Median from Bactria to the Tigris : war arose between 
them, the king of Babylon became the mediator, and a mar- 
riage united the rival princes. 

During the reign of Astyages, the successor of Cyaxares, 
the tribes of the Persians, a nation, in religion, laws, and 
manners, closely resembling the Medes, and who dwelt, 
partly stationary, partly nomadic, in the lands between the 
Persian Gulf and the mountains of Bactria, were united un- 
der Cyrus their native prince, and gained the dominion over 
the Medes. Cyrus was grandson to Astyages but his early 



40 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART L 

history is related differently by the Grecian historians. Cy- 
rus led to war the mass of the Persian tribes, united with 
the more warlike portion of the Medes, and by his conquests 
founded the Persian empire. He first subdued the nations 
of the east, next turned his arms against the Sacians and 
other freebooting hordes of Caucasus, then led his mingled 
host against Croesus, king of Lydia, who had reduced the 
Greeks of the coast, who so long had bid defiance to his pre- 
decessors. Crcesus was defeated and taken prisoner, but 
treated with kindness by the conqueror, whose friend and 
adviser he ever after continued. The whole of Lesser Asia, 
' including the Grecian cities, submitted to Cyrus. Babylonia 
had been in alliance with Croesus : its capital shared the fate 

B. c. of that of Lydia. Here Cyrus found the Jews who had been 

653. transplanted thither when Jerusalem was taken and plunder- 
ed. Similarity of religious faith, humanity, and policy, co- 
operated to procure them permission to return and rebuild 
their city. Cyrus, it is possible, now meditated the conquest 
of Egypt. Judsea was the key to that country, and a grateful 
people might favor the operations of the Persian troops. The 
ancient cities of Persia, Pasagarda and Persepolis, where the 
treasures and chronicles of the empire were kept, and the 
kings crowned and interred, were considered too remote to 
be the seat of so extensive an empire as was that of Persia. 
Babylon was well adapted for that purpose ; but a Persian 
monarch should reside in Persia, and Cyrus founded Susa on 
the Persian soil, at a convenient distance from Babylon. The 

621 last expedition C5rrus undertook was against the Scythians 
ot Turks, and in an engagement with their tribes he lost his 
life. C)rrus possessed all the qualities of a great prince : his 
memory was long held in honor throughout the East, and his 
virtues drew forth the praises of the sages of Greece. 

Cyrus was succeeded by his son Cambyses, who invaded 
and conquered Egypt, aided by the Phoenicians, jealous of the 
favor shown by the last Egyptian kings to the Greeks. Cam- 
byses attempted farther conquests ; but his troops were driven 
back by the ^Ethiopians, and an army sent to take possession 
of the oasis of Hammon perished in the sands of the desert. 
He died by a wound fi-om his own sword — a divine judgment, 
according to the Egyptians, for violatmg their sacred ox Apis 
— as he was about to return to Persia, where a Magian had, 
under the name of his brother Smerdis, seized on the throne. 

621. A conspiracy of seven nobles put an end to the life and reign 
of the Magian, and Darius Hystaspes, one of their number, 
related to the royal family, was made king. 

Under the reign of Darius, Persia flourished, religion was 




4* 



41 



CHAP. il. CENTRAL AND WESTERN ASIA. 43 

reformed and purified, the empire divided into a certain num- 
ber of provinces, and fixed imposts established. Babylon 
hdd rebelled : the loyalty and treachery of Zopyrus, a Per- 
sian noble, reduced it to subjection. The Persian governor 
of Eofypt attempted to conquer the Grecian states of Barce 
and Gyrene ; but Grecian valor daunted the troops of Persia. 
The monarch in person led an army over the Hellespont 
against the Scythians ; but their steppes fought for them, and 
he only conquered Thrace. Master of all the coast of Les- 
ser Asia, Darius sought to bring under his sway the islands 
and the continent of Greece : his fleet was shattered, and " 
the plain of Marathon witnessed the overthrow of the first u c 
Persian host that trod the soil of Hellas. He was preparing 490 
another expedition against Greece : but family-feuds, and a 
rebellion in Egypt, occupied his thoughts, and death finally 485 
surprised him. No Persian monarch, save the great Cyrus, 
stands on a line with Darius. 

Xerxes, the haughty son of a haughty mother, Atossa, the 
daughter of Cyrus, determined to wash away the disgrace 
the Persian arms had sustained in Greece. At the head of / 

countless myriads, drawn from all the provinces of his em- 
pire, he passed the Hellespont. At Salamis he witnessed the 
destruction of his fleet : his land troops, no longer supplied 480. 
with provisions, perished with want and disease. The mon- 
arch, leaving a portion of his army in Bosotia under Mardo- 
nius, fled to Susa, and abandoned himself to pleasure. The 
next year saw at Platsea the total defeat of Mardonius, and 
the Grecian fleet, after the victory at Mycale, sailing in tri- 
umph along the coast of Asia. Cruelties exercised on his 
nearest relatives disgraced the latter days of Xerxes, and he 461 
perished, assassinated by his fi-iends and guards, Artabanus 
and Spamitres. The assassins accused of the murder Dari- 
us, the eldest son of the king, and he was put to death by 
order of his youngest brother, Artaxerxes, who mounted the 
throne. 

Artaxerxes soon discovered the true murderers of his 
father. Artabanus atoned for his treason with his life. A 
rebellion raised by his sons was crushed by Megabyzus, the 
brother-in-law of the king, who also defeated an elder brother 
of the king, who was governor of Bactria, and had taken 
arms to assert his claims to the throne. Rebellion still raged 
in Egypt : an army sent thither by Xerxes, under his brother 
Achaemenes, had been cut to pieces, and Megabyzus was now 
dispatched to reduce that country. He effected his object 
by negotiation ; but the obedience of the Egyptians was not 
durable, and during 100 years we read of kings of Egypt 



44 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I 

This prince, surnamed Long-armed^ was a monarch who pos- 

B c. sessed many great and amiable qualities. He died after a 

*24. long reign, and the history of Persia presents from this, or 

rather an earlier period, the usual scenes of cruelty, treachery, 

fraud, and faction, characteristic of oriental despotism. 

Brothers murdered by brothers, queens exercising every 

species of cruelty on their rivals and their friends, eunuchs 

disposing of the throne, assassinating their sovereign, and 

perishing in their turn by justice or by similar treachery, are 

ordinary events, till, in the reign of the virtuous and ill-fated 

331. Darius Codomanus, the Persian colossus was thrown to the 

earth by the. arms of Greece. 

For when Artaxerxes II. mounted the throne, his younger 
brother Cyrus, who was governor of Lydia, Phrygia, and 
Ionia, under pretence of quelling some disturbances in Cilicia 
and Pisidia, collected, an army in which were 10,000 Greeks, 
401. and with it marched against him. The armies met at Cu- 
naxa, in the neighborhood of Babylon, and victory declared 
for Artaxerxes, as Cyrus fell in the action. The Greeks had 
on their side been conquerors : they were now deserted by 
their Persian confederates, deprived of their leaders by 
treachery ; yet without guides, they, through the midst of a 
hostile nation, barbarous tribes, mountains, defiles, and deserts, 
reached with trifling loss the coast of the Euxuie. This, when 
known in Greece, betrayed the internal weakness of the Per- 
sian empire. Agesilaus the great Spartan had collected a 
Grecian army in Lesser Asia, the ax was apparently laid to 
the root of the Persian monarchy, when Persian gold effect- 
ed what Persian steel could not : bribery armed a confederacy 
in Greece against Sparta, Agesilaus was recalled to the de- 
fence of his country, and the fate of Persia was delayed for 
a season. 

The Persian dominions at the period of their greatest ex- 
tent embraced India west of the Indus, and all the country 
between it and the Mediterranean, Lesser Asia, Thrace, 
Palestine, and Egypt: Arabia paid tribute; the mountain- 
tribes of Caucasus and the Turkish borderers were number- 
ed among its subjects. Yet, as the instance of the Cardu- 
chians or Koords proves, there were many tribes in the very 
heart of the empire who yielded but a nominal submission, 
maintaining nearly total independence. Under Cyrus, each 
subject state was left its own form of government, only bound 
to acknowledge the sovereign by tribute and attendance in 
war. Darius, by attempting to establish an uniformity of ad- 
ministration tnroughout his dominions, deprived his subjects 
of all love of independence. They ate, drank, plowed, and 



CHAP. III. GREECE 45 

wove, heedless of who riled over them; were dragged at 
times away from their homes to share in wars they took no 
interest in ; passive machines, they paid their taxes, or carried 
arms; like a flock of sheep on fertile pastures, they fed 
heedlessly till they became the prey of wolves. They bowed 
as submissively beneath the sceptre of the Macedonian hero 
and his successors as under that of the descendants of Cyrus. 



CHAP. III. 

GREECE. # 

Early State of Greece. 

Impenetrable obscurity covers the early times of Greece 
Were we to believe ancient tradition, corroborated by the 
testimony of geology, a country named Lectonia once cov- 
ered a great portion of the space now occupied by the ^Egean 
Sea. An extensive sea was spread over the plain of Scy thia, 
which burst the Bosporus, and poured into the Mediterranean, 
submerging Lectonia, and overflowing a large part of Greece. 
Hence this country was long under tlie dominion of water. 
The tradition of the fertile vales of Thessaly and Bceotia 
having been lakes, was long preserved. 

Buildings of gigantic dimensions still to be seen in Greece, 
testify for its having been in a very remote period the seat of 
a civilized race. These ruins are long anterior to history : 
they are mentioned in the Homeric poems. Tradition as- 
cribes the erection of them to the Cyclopes, possibly the name 
of that ancient people. It is probable these aboriginal colo- 
nists were, like the nations of Asia, under the government 
of a sacerdotal order, — this alone raises such works. There 
can be little doubt of their being of the Caucasian race. They 
entered Greece from Thrace, and spread over the whole 
country : for their chief remains are in Peloponnesus. Possi- 
bly they were of the same race with the aborigines of Italy. 
To these succeeded the Pelasgians, a numerous tribe, who 
overran Greece, Italy, the islands, and a part of Lesser Asia; 
they, too, came from Thrace. Agriculture was their chief 
employment : the arts of peace flourished among them. The 
eligion of Greece was chiefly Pelasgian. The thickly-peopled 
regions of Thrace still sent forth its tribes. The Acheeans, 
the race who fought at Troy, next succeeded, and overcame 
the Pelasgians. Legends of the Lapithse and Centaurs, if 



46 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PARTI, 

credit is to be given to them, may relate to contests between 
the Achaean and Pelasgian races, for the possession of Thes- 
saly. 

Colonies, it is said, came from Egypt, Phoenicia, and Phry- 
gia, and civilized the barbarous, mast-eating savages who 
roamed the wilds of Greece. Danaus, an Egyptian, ruled at 
Argos ; Cecrops, from Sais, at Athens ; Pelops, the Phrygian, 
gave name to Peloponnesus ; Cadmus, the Phcenician, founded 
Thebes. Little reliance is to be placed on these accoimts 
there is no evidence of any race of the inhabitants of Greece 
having been in the savage state. The Phoenicians, undoubt- 
edly, early visited the coasts of Greece, and a colony did, per- 
haps, settle there ; yet it is unusual for a maritime people to 
g'o so far inland as Thebes. With respect to the Egyptian 
colonies, it is not unlikely that the artful and vain-glorious 
priests of Sa'is, and of other towns of Egypt, imposed their 
fables on the credulous Greeks, who first visited that country. 

The Achaean period is the heroic age of Greece : then 
flourished, or are said to have flourished, the mythic heroes 
Hercules, Theseus, Jason, and others : then were the Argo- 
nautic expedition, the wars of Thebes, and that of Troy, eter- 
nized by the verses of Homer. As a real historic event, the 
chief that this period offers is, the erection of a kingdom by 
Minos in Crete, three generations before the Trojan war. 
This monarch, at once king, prophet, and lawgiver, collected 
the various tribes of Crete into one state, established a ma- 
rine, conquered the piratic Carians, who svt^armed in the 
iEgean, and reduced the isles beneath his power. 

The Achaeans, like the Pelasgians, were devoted to agri- 
culture and navigation. Their government was aristocrato- 
monarchic : they possessed numerous slaves, acquired by war 
or by purchase, who performed all servile offices. Their chief 
amusements, like those of the Germans and Scandinavians, 
were gymnastic exercises, and at banquets listening to the 
songs of bards, who chanted the deeds of living or departed 
heroes. Manners, language, religion, were the same in all 
the states: even between the Achaeans and the Trojans no 
difference is to be perceived on these points. The Pytbian 
and Dodonean oracles tended to keep up union : no traces of 
castes appear : the princes and fathers of families were priests. 
The monarch was distinguished chiefly by his personal quali- 
ties: he had the command in war, a larger share of the booty, 
orecedence, and a portion of land assigned him. The nobles 
were distinguished as much by their powers of mind and body 
as by birtli. The people had a voice in matters of war and 




47 



CHAP, in GREECE. 49 

peace : no law conld be made without their approbation. The 
elements of the future democracy were there. 
I The religion of Greece was the worship of deities presiding 
over the various parts of nature and powers of mind. Under 
the names of Zeus, Poseidon, Apollo, Hera, Pallas, &c. namet" 
m(»stly of unknown origin, these deities were honored by 
temples, sacrifices, processions : oracles were believed to an- 
nounce tiieir will and the future. This system of religion 
was Grecian, and unborrowed. The Phoenicians may have 
introduced some new deities ; and, when an intercourse was 
opened with Egypt, mysteries and new rites and dogmas were 
imported from that country. |" 



Dorian Migration, 

The Achsean race acknowledged a supreme head in the 
king of Mycense. After the Trojan war, the bonds that 
united them were loosed. A time of disturbance and revo- 
lution came: the Dorians, a brave and hardy race, left 
their abodes in the mountains, and came down on Greece. 
This movement was followed by great changes : numerous 
emigrations took place : Grecian colonies covered the coasts 
of southern Italy, Sicily, and Lesser Asia. T"he Dorians, it 
is said, were led by the descendants of Hercules to make good 
their claim to the throne of Argos, of whicli their ancestor 
had been deprived ; and the Dorian immigration is called the 
Return of the Heracleides. But Hercules is a mythic per- 
sonage, — one who, it is probable, never had a real existence ; 
and the Dorians were, doubtless, moved by other causes. They 
speedily overran the Peloponnesus : her mountains defended 
Arcadia: Achsea alone remained to the Atreidas: Laconia, 
•Messenia, and Argolis became the property of the Dorians : 
iEgina and the neighboring islands fell to them, and a portion 
of them settled in Crete. That branch of the Achasans named 
lonians, retreated to Attica, and joined its inhabitants, who 
were of the same race ; being pressed for room, a portion of 
these migrated to the banks of the Hermus, in Lesser Asia, 
and the adjacent isles. Peloponnesians, named iEolians, had 
previously settled on the coast from Cyzicus to the Hermu?. 
No great kingdom existed at that time in Lesser Asia : the 
coasts had been possessed by pirate states of Leieges and 
Carians. The people of the interior favored the settlement 
of the lonians ; a race of mild manners, less addicted to war 
than to trade and manufactures. The conquering Dorians 
afterwards came from Crete, and took from the Carians Cni- 
dus, Halicarnassus, and Rhodes. Thus were formed the Gre- 
5 



50 HISTOKY OF THE WORLD. PART 1. 

cian ci^^ies of liesser Asia, where poetry, philosopliy, arts, and 
scieiice bloomed ere they attained any height in Greece.* 

Sparta. 

The Dorian state of Laconia was, at this period, the great- 
est state of Greece, Two kings were at the head of it; under 
them stood the Dorian nobility, the Spartans ; then the Pe- 
riceci or Laconians, and, lastly, the Helots, or descendants at 
the conquered people, a body of oppressed, ill-used serfs. 
Disputes and unfixed relations among these orders made the 
want of a settled system of legislation apparent. Lyeurgus, 
brother to one of the kings, and guardian of his infant heir., 
saw this necessity, and resolved to remedy it. He went tc 
Crete, whose constitution, originally established by Minos, 
and renewed by the Dorians, was then in the highest repute ; 
made himself acquainted with its institutions, and formed a 
code of laws, such as he deemed fitted for Sparta. The Del- 
phic oracle, so highly venerated by all of Dorian race, ap- 
plauded his project, and pronounced him inspired. 

The object of all Dorian legislation was the maintenance 
of a martial character in the upper and dominant classes. To 
crush and grind down the ill-fated serfs, and give leisure for 
the practice of military exercises to the warlike race of the 
conquerors, was the aim of both Cretan and Spartan legisla- 
tion. In Crete there were but two orders, the lords and the 
serfs : in Laconia there were three ; the Perioeci or Laconi- 
ans, whether Dorians of mingled marriages, or Achseans who 
had been lefl some privileges by the conquerors, forming a 
link between the two former. Lyeurgus divided the lands 
of Laconia into 89,000 lots; 9000 large ones for the Spartans. 
and 30,000 smaller for the Perioeci, all to be tilled for them 
by the miserable serfs. The government was in the hands of 
the Spartans alone. Both Spartans and Perioeci were alike 
engaged in unceasing military exercises. By a fatal error in 
legislation, the number of the Spartan families was closed, 
and in default of male issue, daughters could inherit landed 
property ; hence there arose an inequality among the leading 
families, and a pernicious oligarchy, where women had pow- 
erful influence. At the time of the Theban war, the greater 
part of the land was in the hands of females. 

The Spartan government consisted of the two kings of the 
race of Hercules, and a senate of twenty-eight old men (the 
Gerusia,) chosen by the people. The kings were leaders in 

♦ The common name of the Creeks was Hellenes, a name posterior to thf 
time of Homer. It is uncertain when it first came into use. 



CHAP. III. GREECE. 51 

war, and out of Laconia their power was unlimited. The pec»- 
ple (i. e. the Spartans) were assembled every full moon to 
decide on measures proposed by the senate, which they could 
only accept or reject ; they decided on all crimes against the 
state, on the succession of the kings, and the election and 
dismissal of magistrates. If peace or war was the question, 
the PerioBci were called to the council, as they were to share 
in the danger. The Helots had no part in legislation, or even 
in religious festivals. 

As a counterpoise to the power of the kings, a magistracy, 
the Ephorate, was introduced in the time of king Thoopom- 
pus. The Ephori were five men selected from the people 
(the Spartans,) without regard to age. They alone were al- 
ways in connexion with the people ; they had the inspection 
of all magistrates, were present at every transaction, always 
attended the kings, directed all foreign affairs, accused kings 
and magistrates before the people, where they were them- 
selves both judges and accusers. At length they completely 
crushed all other power, and became the tyrants of the state. 

The greatest rigor of manners was enjoined by Lycurgus. 
He established syssitia, or public meals, at which all the male 
part of the citizens ate together. The most implicit obedi- 
ence and regard to age was impressed on the minds of youth ; 
the most inflexible endurance of pain inculcated ; most things, 
even slaves, horses, and dogs, were possessed in common. 
The chase was their favorite enjoyment; every species of 
trade was prohibited ; money was huge masses of iron. 

The natural result of such an education was a sternness 
of character, a pride and haughtiness, and love of command. 
While the institutions of Lycurgus continued in vigor, the 
Spartan character was distinguished for the sterner virtues ; 
when it relaxed, profligacy and corruption of every species 
broke in amongst them. 

Athens. 

Athens did not rise into importance till long after Sparta. 
Argos was a large city ; and Corinth, the entrepot of trade 
between the Mgesm and Ionian seas, was abounding in wealth 
before Athens became of any consequence ; but they and the 
other states of Peloponnesus oflTer at this period little to at- 
tract attention. 

The tale of the Egyptian Cecrops coming to Attica is a 
manifest fable, Attica had numerous petty princes, each 
ruling his own village. A prince, named Theseus, is said to 
have united several of these little states into one, and col- 
lected the people to Athens. But his power could not have 



52 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. fA. t I. 

been great, as Mnestheus, the second from him, led but forty 
ships to Troy. At the time of the Dorian irruption into Pelo- 
ponnesus, the family of Theseus lost the throne ; and Melan- 
thius, of Achsean race, frv^m Messenia, coming to Athens, ob- 
tained the chief direction of affairs : his son Codrus drove back 
the Dorians, and forced them to be content with Megara, at 
that time united with Attica. The legend says, Codrus of- 
fered himself up for his country, and that the royal dignity 
was abolished out of honor to him. The republican spirit had 
however, from various causes, been on the increase at Athens. 
Towards the end of the sixth olympiad,* a regular aristocracy 
was established: the chief magistrate was called Archon, and 
his office was annual. A farther change augmented the num- 
ber of archons to nine, three with peculiar rank and titles, 
six as presidents of courts of justice. This was the foundation 
of a rigid aristocracy ; but as the people had all along retained 
the right of assembling to pass laws, it was in a condition, 
whenever it could get a leader, to assert its rights and better 
its condition. 

But the aristocracy, being in possession of the admin istra 
tion of justice, and being also invested with the sacerdotal 
dignities, the people had no sure place of refuge when ag- 

B. c grieved. Matters fell, therefore, into turmoil and confusion. 

623. l)raco, in the first year of the thirty-ninth olympiad, sought a 
remedy in the revival of an ancient species of divine law; but 
its general maxims were too rigid and severe. It suited not 
the spirit of the times, and became generally detested. The 
internal troubles still continued ; and twelve years afterwards, 
in a struggle between two aristocratic parties, Cylon, the 
head of one of them, attempted, by the aid of the tyrant or 
ruler of Megara, to raise himself to similar power in Athens. 
His project failed ; the nobles, headed by the Alcmseonides, 
the chiefs of the rival faction, summoned their vassals from 
the country, and besieged Cylon and his adherents in the 
citadel. He and his brother escaped ; but his followers were 
dragged from the altars and slain. This offence brought down 
vengeance from the gods ; and though the chief agents were 
exiled, defeat and sickness visited the city. A prophet, Epi- 
menides of Crete, was summoned to purify and atone for the 
city. He regulated the religious worship, and prepared the 
way for the system of legislation projected by his friend 
Solon. 

In the third year of the 46th olympiad, Solon being archon, 
the land-owners and citizens, debtors and creditors, were in 

— ■ --.— — , ■■■. ■ I — ■■ -- • - ■ I ■ ^^ 

* The olympiads were periods of four years. The first began 1». C. 776. 




6* 



63 



eJHAP. III. GREECE. 55 

open feud. Solon was called upon to legislate. His first 
step was to arrange matters between debtor and creditor, 
which he accomplished by altering the standard, and lower- 
ing the rate of interest. He then deprived the nobility of 
a portion of their former power, by dividing all the people 
into four classes regulated by property : thus, while he intro- 
duced a democracy, founding a new aristocracy. The nobil- 
ity, as possessors of the largest properties, as the sole mem- 
bers of the court of Areopagus, as possessed of the priesthoods, 
and directors of religious ceremonies, still retained an ample 
degree of influence. By the establishment of the Council of 
Four Hundred, an annually rotating college, he at once gave 
so many families an interest in the new order of things, that 
there remained no chance of its being totally subverted. He 
finally made all the people swear not to make any alteration 
during the next ten years, deeming that period sufficiently 
long for habituating them to the new constitution. 

Solon's laws did not put an end to the internal broils. The 
nobility, being the owners of the largest properties, were in 
the first classes, and the contests for honors and dignities 
raged among them as hotly as ever. The lowest class, the 
Thetes, who were excluded from office, and were not liable 
to taxes, or to serve in heavy armor, formed in the popular 
assembly a portion of the sovereignty, and sat in courts of 
justice. They were a ready weapon for any one who knew 
how to employ it. The old local parties of the Paralians and 
the Pediseans also still subsisted. Solon had travelled to the 
East: Megacles, the chief of the Alcmseonides, who had now 
returned to Athens, was at the head of the Paralians ; Ly- 
curgus was the leader of the Pediseans, or country gentle- 
men ; Peisistratus, a descendant of the ancient kings, sought 
the favor of the lower class. He obtained by their means the 
supreme power: his rivals, however, united and expelled 
him. Megacles then gave him his daughter in marriage, and 
restored him, but again drove him away. After eleven year."' 
absence, Peisistratus returned at the head of an army, ana 
governed Athens till his death. His sway was mild and be-* 
neficent; the laws of Solon were observed, and Athens flour"* 
ished under him. His sons, Hippias and Hipparchus, who 
succeeded him, trod m his steps ; but an act of private re- 
venge deprived the latter of life, and conferred an unmerited 
immortality on the assassins, Harmodius and Aristogeiton. 
Hippias grew suspicious and cruel. The Alcmaeonides had 
devoted their wealth to the rebuilding of the temple of Delphi: 
the priestess, gained by them, incessantly commanded the 
Spartans to restore liberty to Athens. The latter, glad of 



56 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

B. c. the pretext, obeyed the oracle. Hippias abandoned Attica, 
510. and retired to his estates in Asia. Solon's constitution re- 
mained ; but the heads of parties, to obtain influence, attached 
themselves to the aristocracy or the people. Isagoras, of an- 
cient lineage, headed the former, favored by the Spartans. 
Cleisthenes, the Alcmaeonide, sought to win the people. 
When archon, four years after the banishment of Hippias, he 
shook the whole Solonian constitution, and opened the way 
to all the future evils of unbridled democracy, by dividing the 
four original tribes into ten, and altering in like manner all 
the inferior divisions, and increasing the senate to 500 mem- 
bers, 50 from each of the new tribes. Prompted by Isagoras, 
the Spartans sent a herald to demand the banishment of those 
stained with the blood of Cylon's adherents. Cleisthenes was 
obliged to yield and retire. The Spartans attempted to re- 
store the old aristocracy ; the Athenians sought aid of Per- 
sia; Cleomenes, the Spartan, marched an army against 
Athens ; but his allies abandoned him, and his colleague, De- 
maratus, refusing to join in his project, the Spartans retired, 
and the democracy of Athens was fully established. 



CHAP. IV. 

GREECE TO HER SUBVERSION BY THE MACEDONIANS. 

The Persian War. 

Greece and Persia now first came into conflict. Cyrus had 
conquered the Grecian colonies in Lesser Asia : the love of 
liberty however was not extinct, and the secret advice of 
Histiffius, tyrant of Miletus, whom Darius detained at his 
court, threw the Ionian cities into revolt. They called on 
Athens, as head of the Ionian race, to assist them. The aid 
was gmnted, and the anger of the Great King thereby in- 
curred. Darius meditated the conquest of Greece and the 
islands ; he sent his ambassadors to demand homage : many 
islands, especially iEgina, delivered earth and water. A 
large army, under Datis and Artaphernes, was sent to subdue 
4V0. the refractory. The plain of Marathon witnessed the defeat 
of the Persian vassals by 9000 Athenians and 1000 Plataeans. 
Datis and Artaphernes returned to Asia with the discomfited 
host. 

The Athenians resolved to punish those who had submit- 
ted to the Persian king. Their first enterprise against Naxoa, 



CHAP. IV. GREECE. 57 

dnder Miltiades, failed ; the general was condemned to pay 
the costs, and being unable, was treated according to Athe- 
nian law, like any other citizen. Aristides, Xanthippus, and 
Themistocles, took the place of Miltiades, and by employing 
the proper methods of managing a democracy, raised Athens 
from a petty town to the rank of a leading state. The threat- 
ening war of the Persians showed that Athens' only hope lay 
in the augmentation of her navy. Themistocles awaked the 
ancient grudge against ^Egina ; and the produce of the sil- 
ver mines of Laurium, which had been hitherto divided 
among the citizens, was appropriated to the building of a 
fleet. Athens and JEgina were in conflict when intelligence 
arrived of the immense preparations of Xerxes, the Persian 
king, for the conquest of Greece. All enmity ceased ; a bond 
for common defence was established among the Grecian g. q 
states. In the spring of the first year of the 75th olympiad, 480. 
Xerxes led, as is said, two millions of Asiatics over the Hel- 
lespont. A fleet of 1200 vessels attended the march of this 
huge multitude. The progress of the Persian monarch was 
unimpeded till he reached the ever-memorable pass of Ther- 
mopylae, leading from Thessaly into Proper Greece. The 
narrow passage between the mountain and the sea was guard- 
ed by a resolute band of Spartans, Phocians, Locrians, and 
others, under the command of Leonidas, the Spartan king. 
Division after division of the Persian army were repulsed 
with immense loss in attempting to force their way. At 
length, a traitor revealed another passage through the moun- 
tains: Leonidas, on hearing it, dismissed his allies, and, at 
the head of his Spartans, attacked the Persian multitudes, 
and fell, covered with wounds, amidst the heaps of slain. 
Monuments, song, and story, have conspired to exalt this 
deed of heroes. Meantime, the Persian fleet had suffered 
from a storm, and had been roughly handled by the Greeks 
in an engagement off* the promontory of Artemisium. 

The Persian army marched on to Attica, took and burned 
Athens. The Grecian fleet lay in the strait between Salamis 
and the continent ; the Persian imprudently attacked them 
there: a total defeat was the consequence. Xerxes, who 
had from the land beheld the destruction of his fleet, hasted 
back to Asia, leaving an army of 300,000 under Mardonius. 
The following year the Greeks, to the number of 110,000, 
fought and defeated the Persians at Platsea, and but 40,000 
of the latter returned to Asia. On the same day (Sept. 22.) 
the Grecian fleet totally defeated that of the Persians at the 
promontory of Mycale, in Ionia. 

Athens got a large share of the Persian spoils ; the city 



5^ HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

was rebuilt, and the port of Pirseus fortified. The insolence 
of Pausanias, the Spartan chief, having disgusted the allies, 
the command was transferred to Athens. It was resolved to 
prosecute the war against Persia; each of the allies was 
bound to supply a certain number of men and ships ; they 
compounded with the Athenians for the payment of an annual 
sum of money, instead of furnishing their contingent ; the 
Athenian treasurers received each year the contributions 
of the cities on the isles and coasts of the ^gean ; and Athens, 
at the expense of the allies, maintained a powerful army and 
navy. The jealousy of the Spartans was excited ; they were 
on the point of declaring war, when an earthquake levelled 
Sparta ; the Helots and Messenians rose in rebellion, and the 
haughty Spartans were forced to call on Athens for aid. But 
they distrusted their allies, and the Athenians joined the Ar- 
gives, the hereditary foes of Sparta. The rebellion of the 
Helots lasted ten years, and was ended by a composition with 
the rebels. Athens was now in the height of her power; she 
sent 200 ships to Egypt to assist the natives against the Per- 
sians, took a part in the affairs of Cyprus, beat the iEginetes, 
and established a democracy at Megara. The great men of 
Athens at this period were, Aristides, Themistocles, and 
Cimon ; all of whom, like Miltiades, experienced popular in- 
gratitude, and were driven from their country. 

The Peloponnesian War. 

Pericles was now the leading man at Athens. An Alc- 
msBonide by the mother's side, and son of Xanthippus, who 
won the victory at Mycale, he sought power by bringing in 
the wildest democracy. All barriers of the constitution were 
thrown down, and power given to the lowest rabble, by whom 
and over whom he hoped to rule. Of commanding eloquence, 
he swayed the people ; handsome, rich, generous, and brave, 
he was master of their affections. Magnificent in his taste, 
he adorned the city with stately buildings at the cost of the 
allies, and all the arts flourished beneath his patronage. 

Pericles reduced Euboea and Samos ; he covered the coasts 
and islands with Atheniar colonies ; he made the Athenians 
masters of the sea, ann already those dreams of distant con- 
quest, which caused their overthrow, began to float before the 
imagiTiation of the vain-glorious people. He sought to en- 
feeble the Doric confederacy, and an opportunity soon offered. 
Corinth and her colony Corcyra were, after Athens, the most 
considerable naval powers. United, they were able to cope 
with her ; but commercial jealousy prevented their co-ope- 
rating, and, at last, they went to war with each other. Cor- 




59 



CHAP. IV, GREECE 61 

cyra addressed herself to Athens for aid ; the Corinthians 
complained to Sparta of the breach of the truce by the latter 
power : other events occurred to increase the odium against 
Athens, and, at length, war was declared against her by the 
Doric confederation, and an army, under Archidamus, one of b. c 
the Spartan kings, invaded Attica. The plan laid down by ^^^ 
Pericles for carrying on the war was, to abandon the country 
to the Lacedaemonian army, and then retaliate by descents on 
Peloponnesus, by which they would soon weary the confede- 
rates of the war. Unfortunately, destiny fought also against 
Athens : in the second year of the war the plague broke out, 
and swept away numbers of citizens ; amongst them, Pericles 
himself. The war was still carried on with various success. 
The most remarkable event of it in Greece, was the gallant 
defence of Platsea against the Peloponnesians. The greatest 
man that appeared among the Spartans was Brasidas, who, to 
the severe virtues of a Spartan, united mildness and gentle- 
ness of manners. Among the Athenians, Nicias and De- 
mosthenes were the most distinguished of the nobles ; Cleon, 
the leading demagogue ; but Alcibiades, of noble birth, im- 
mense wealth, extreme beauty, and eminent talents, far 
eclipsed all the men of his time. He was the ward of Peri- 
cles and the pupil of Socrates ; but, hurried away by his am- 
bition, he waited not till years had matured his judgment, 
engaging in politics he took the popular side, and plunged his 
country into the fatal expedition to Sicily. 

Numerous Grecian colonies had settled in Sicily, and had 
risen to great wealth and power : they were almost all democ- 
racies ; but tyrants occasionally ruled them. Syracuse was 
the most distinguished of these cities. Gelon had possessed 
himself of the tyranny, and governed with justice and mild- 
ness: after his death, the people fell into divisions: the 
smaller cities, which were oppressed, applied to Athens for 
help. Alcibiades, who was then in the plenitude of his influ- 
ence, warmly exhorted the people to attend to the call, and 
drew a brilliant picture of the glorious prospect of universal 
empire that now seemed destined for Athens. In an evil 
hour the people, though warned by Nicias and other men of 
age and experience, yielded their assent, and an expedition 
against Syracuse was decreed. The finest fleet that ever 
left Athens sailed under the command of Alcibiades, Nicias 
and Lamachus, and success at first attended its operations, 
but the enemies of Alcibiades accused him of profaning the 
mysteries; he was recalled, and fled to Sparta: a Spartan 
gfoneral, Gylippus, was dispatched to Syracuse, and though 
5ie Athenians augmented their army in Sicily to 40,000 men, 
6 



62 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

B. c. and sent out Demosthenes, their ablest general, it was tie- 
ii2. feat'jd, and men and generals lost life or liberty. 

The news of this misfortune was at first not credited at 
Athens: when its truth was confirmed, the people looked 
around and saw themselves without horse, or heavy infantiy, 
or ships, with an empty treasury, their subjects in rebellion, 
their allies fallen oflT, the enemy in tl.'eir country, and before" 
their port ; yet they lost not courage, but vigorously prepared 
for defence. The Lacedaemonians, by the advice of Alcibia 
des, instead of making annual incursions into Attica, ha 
taken and fortified Decelia, a post half-way between Athen 
and Boeotia, and from thence wasted the country : still the 
Athenians held out for seven years : and, but for the party- 
spirit that prevailed, which drove again into exile Alcibiades, 
and unjustly put to death most of their other good generals, 
they might have come off victorious in the struggle. The 
vanity and inexperience of the Athenian commanders (warned 
405. in vain by Alcibiades) gave a decisive victory to the Lacedae- 
monian Lysander, at the river -5Dgos, and Athens' last hope, 
her renewed fleet, was lost. Lysander soon appeared in the 
Piraeus; the people made a gallant resistance, but hunger 
compelled them to sue for peace. The Thebans and Co- 
rinthians insisted that the city should be burnt, and the in- 
habitants reduced to slavery. The Lacedaemonians declared 
they would never submit to the destruction of a city which 
had merited so well of Greece. But to cramp her power 
effectually, she was allowed to possess but twelve ships ; the 
Long Legs, the walls between the city and the Piraeus, were 
broken down ; and the government placed in the hands of an 
oligarchy of thirty persons. 

Thus ended the Peloponnesian war, after a continuance of 
twenty-seven years, and with it the dominion of Athens, in 
the seventy-fifth year after the battle of Salamis. During 
that period Athens had acquired another and more lasting 
empire, of which Lysander could not deprive her : she had 
become the mistress of Greece in all the arts and sciences 
^ that embellish and ennoble life. Poetry, philosophy, archi- 
tecture, sculpture, attained during the time of Athenian sway 
an eminence never surpassed. The philosophy of Socrates 
and his disciples, the dramas of Sophocles and Euripides, the 
stately Parthenon, and other works of the immortal Phidias, 
drew thither all Greece ; and nowhere were religious festivals 
celebrated with equal taste and splendor. Commerce flour- 
ished; good taste was diffused among all ranks of societ3f 



JHAP. IV, GREECE. 63 



Lacedcemonian Dominion. 

When Athens fell, Sparta remained witliout a rival : she 
commanded at sea as at land: her Harmosts, somewhat like 
the English residents at the courts of Indian princes, directed 
the policy of the independent towns of Greece and Asia. 
The pride and arrogance of Sparta lost her this empire. The 
oligarchy established and protected at Athens by her became 
odious ; Athenian exiles, headed by Thrasybulus, returned to b. c 
their country in arms, and overthrew the thirty tyrants : the 403 
Long Legs were rebuilt. Conon, the Athenian, was admiral 
of the Persian fleet ; Persian gold was employed to raise the 
city to independence, and Athenian fleets again appeared at 
sea. Sparta still sought to establish an oligarchy in every 
town; and wherever, as at Olynthps, popular liberty estab- 
lished itself, the Spartan commanders iiad orders to extin- 
guish it. 

During this period, Persia exercised considerable influence 
in the affairs of Greece. The memorable retreat of the Ten 
Thousand, who, opposed by all the arts of oriental treachery, 
by all the forces of the empire, and the difficulties of an un- 
known, mountainous country, had forced their way to the 
Euxine, revealed the secret of the internal weakness of that 
vast empire. Agesilaus, king of Sparta, had meditated con- 
quests in Asia, and had for two years carried on war with 
success in that country. The Persian court saw its danger, 396 
and adopted the policy of subsidizing the different states of 
Greece, and keeping up such a balance of power among them, 
as would prevent any projects of invasion of Asia. Hence, 
as in modern times two Turkish pashas may have different 
foreign policies, so of the two satraps of Lesser Asia the one 
would support the Lacedsemonians, the other their enemies. 
By these means the influence of the Persian monarch was 
become so great in Greece, that he dictated the terms of a 
peace among the contending states ; in which he declares the 
cities of Lesser Asia, and the islands of Clazomenae and 
Cyprus, to belong to himself, and pronounces the indepen- 
dence of all other cities, great and small, with the exception 
of Lemnos, Imbrus, and Scyrus, which should belong as of 
old to Athens, and menaces with war such as refuse to ac- 387 
cept it. This peace, called that of Antalcidas, from the 
name of the Spartan who was the chief agent in bringing it 
10 bear, was viewed with indignation by every man of noble 
mind, who compared it with the terms which Greece, when 
at unity with herself, had imposed on the Persians, and sav 



64 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

in it loss of honor and independence by the permission of 
foreign interference. 

Tkeban Dominion. 

Sparta had humbled Athens; her own turn was to come 
from a quarter whence it was least expected. A Spartan 
general, Phoebidas, had, in the midst of peace, made himself, 
by treachery, master of the citadel of Thebes ; his govern- 
ment punished him, but retained the fortress, and established 
an oligarchy in that city. Sparta seemed at this period i 
the height of her power. Her king, Agesilaus, was victo- 
rious in Asia, she had dissolved the Olynthian confederacy, 
and reduced Olynthus to that state of subjection, from which 
Athens alone was exempt, and never less dreaded decline, 
when a conspiracy was formed by some of the democratic 
party in Thebes ; the principal oligarchs were murdered, the 
citadel besieged, and the garrison forced to surrender. 

Two great men now appeared to guide the Theban affairs, 
Pelopidas and Epaminondas ; the Athenians joined them ; the 
Thebans recovered their supremacy over the other BcEOtian 
towns. The Lacedasmonians were now forced to recall Agesi 
laus from his conquests in Asia, to oppose the Theban and 
Athenian generals. The power of Thebes continually in- 
creasing, the Athenians grew jealous, and sent ambassadors 
to the Great King, who directed the Greeks to make peace 
among themselves on the basis of that of Antalcidas. Athens 
and Sparta obeyed — it was for the advantage of both — and 
Sparta, who had lost all injfluence out of Peloponnesus, will- 
ingly withdrew her harmosts. Cleombrotus was marching 
his troops out of Phocis, when he received orders to make the 
Thebans restore the other Boeotian cities to independence. 
The Thebans, who were dissatisfied at the peace by which 
they were the only losers, refused compliance; the=^rmies 
^ c. ^^^ on the plain of Leuctra, and the Spartans were for the 
371. first time defeated in a pitched battle. The charm was now 
dissolved. It was proved that the Lacedaemonian arms were 
not invincible. 

Epammondas and Pelopidas now invaded the Peloponnesus 
at the head of 40,000 men ; the Argives, Elians, and the 
democratic party in Arcadia, joined the Thebans, who entered 
and ravaged the Lacedaemonian territory. Epaminondas ad- 
vanced into Messenia, called the oppressed inhabitants to lib- 
erty, recalled tne exiles, and raised a town named Messene, 
in which he placed a Theban garrison. Athens joined Sparta. 
Ambassadors from all the parties hastened to the Persian 
court. Pelopidas headed the Theban embassy, peace was 



CHAP. IV. GREECE. 67 

dictated on the Theban terms and the stream of gold that 
previously flowed to Sparta was directed to Thebes. The 
Arcadians had now become powerful in Peloponnesus. Lyco- 
medes, one of their leading men, sought to detach them from 
the Thebans : the latter, fearing to lose their influence in Pe- 
loponnesus, sent an army thither under Epaminondas. A 
second battle for the supremacy in Greece was fought at b c 
Mantinea between the Thebans and Lacedaemonians, and ^^^ 
Epaminondas died in the arms of victory. 

Philip of Macedon. 

The republican spirit was now extinct in Greece : no state 
was in a condition to take the lead ; no man of any eminence 
was to be found except in Athens. The republican virtues 
had fled from those who had sunk to be the pensioners of 
Persia. A monarchical was the only form of supremacy 
suited to the present state of Greece, and Providence had 
provided such in a constitutional monarchy — that of Macedon. 

Jason, ^e tyrant of Pheree in Thessaly, had conceived this 
design. The Thessalians were a strict aristocracy, with a 
numerous body of vassals called Penestse, resembling the 
barons of the middle ages. Occasionally there rose a prince 
in some town among them who gradually united several towns 
under him. At this period, Jason was such in Pherse, and 
Polydamas in Pharsalus. Both were men of virtue, only that 
of Jason was not proof against ambition. They united in the 
project of turning the quarrels of Thebes and Sparta to the 
advantage of Thessaly, and by the influence of Polydamas, 
Jason was chosen Tagus, or commander-in-chief of Thessaly. 
He took the same road to power afterwards so successfully 
trodden by Philip ; but he was unfortunate in three circum- 
stances: his troops were chiefly mercenaries, and therefore 
not to be depended upon ; he was not an hereditary prince, 
and his nobility were jealous of him ; he appeared at a time 
when the great Theban generals were in the height of their 
glory, and when Athens had generals far superior to those 
she opposed to Philip. Fate seemed resolved to deprive Thes- 
saly of the glory of becoming a great power. Jason perished 
by the daggers of conspirators : his brothers and his nephew 
Alexander were tyrants, in the modern sense. The last was 
murdered by his own relations, and Thessaly fell into confu- 
sion and disorder. 

At this period, the celebrated Holy War broke out, and 
^eatly contributed to the farther demoralization of Greece, 
when all reverence for the gods and every thing sacred was 
'ost, and the holy offerings collected for so many years in the 



68 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

temple at Delphi, were scattered through Greece, the pre- 
cious metals melted and coined, the crowns and other votive 
offerings profanely worn by women and boys of loose life. 

The Boeotians and Thessalians formed the great majority 
in the Amphictyonic Council. They caused a decree to be 
passed, inflicting a heavy fine on the Lacedsemonians for their 
ravages in Bceotia ; and when these refused payment, they, 
from private motives, did the same to the Phocians for having 
occupied the land that once belonged to the Cirrhseans, and 
had been consecrated to the god. Relying on the aid of 
Athens and Sparta, the Phocians refused obedience, and by 
the advice of Philomelus, one of their chief men, seized on 
the temple and its treasures. Greece at that time abounded 
in soldiers of fortune, men who made war a trade, who served 
any one who was able to pay them. Masters of the immense 
wealth of the temple, the Phocians, therefore, easily collected 
an army, and they carried on the contest for a space of ten 
years. 

In this war the Thessalians, being hard pressed by the Pho- 
cians, called Philip king of Macedon to their aid. This tal- 
ented prince, who had been brought up at Thebes in the time 
of Epaminondas, had, from the day he ascended the Macedo- 
nian throne, all his thoughts occupied on the means of strength- 
ening and extending his hereditary kingdom. He aided the 
Thessalians, and, after a variety of changes of fortune, the 
Phocians were at length destroyed. Philip made himself 
master of Olynthus and all the cities on the coast of Thrace, 
and in spite of all the efforts of Demosthenes, who did all that 
was in man to rouse the Athenians to energy while it was 
yet time, continually advanced in his plans of power and ag- 
•. c grandizement, and at length, on the field of Chseronea, saw 
338 the independence of Greece prostrate at his feet. 

Philip was now at the height of his power : the Spartans 
had been excluded from the Amphictyonic Council, and the 
votes of the Phocians transferred to him : he had the right 
of priority in consulting the Delphian oracle, and was presi- 
dent of the Pythian games. He called a general assembly 
of the Greeks to Corinth ; and was there appointed com- 
mander-in-chief of the Grecian forces in the war now to be 
undertaken against Persia, under pretext of avenging her 
former violations of the Grecian temples. The Macedoniar 
monarch thus occupied the station for which he was fitted, 
and which the present state of Greece required, — that of 
head of the Grecian confederacy ; from which the ill-judging 
patriotism of Demosthenes so long sought to exclude hun. 
The idea of reducing Greece to a province of his kingdom 



CFIAP V. ALEXANDER AND HI& SUCCESSORS. 69 

he was too wise to entertain. In the midst of his projects 
for the conquest of Asia, he fell by the hand of an assassin. 



CHAP. V. 

ALEXANDER AND HIS SUCCESSORS. 

Alexander. 

Alexander was in his twentieth year when his father was b. q 
slain : he had been educated by Aristotle, and his naturally 337 
great tolents sedulously cultured. Difficulties environed him 
on his accession : the Athenians and Thebans, on the intelli- 
gence of the death of Philip, were flying to arms, when 
Alexander appeared in Boeotia at the head of an army. They 
were terrified, and desisted. The lUyrians and Triballi had 
made inroads into Macedon: the young prince marched 
against them, and conquered to the Danube. A report was 
spread in Greece of his death : Thebes rose in arms ; but 
Alexander suddenly returned, entered BoBotia, and took and 
levelled that city. All Greece was now at his devotion. He 
called on the different states for the contingents they had 
voted his father for the invasion of Asia ; and, at the head of 334 
30,000 foot and 4500 horse, passed the Hellespont. At the 
river Granicus the Persian army opposed his progress : it met 
a total defeat, and all Lesser Asia fell to the conqueror : he 
restored the Grecian cities to independence, and pursued his 
march through Cilicia. At Issus, in the pass of the mountains 333 
leading into Syria, he again encountered and defeated the 
Persian army. He continued his progress southwards, took 3^2. 
Tyre, after an obstinate resistance, and reduced all Egypt to 
subjection. He here founded the most permanent monument 
of his fame, the city of Alexandria, — a place that has exer- 
cised such influence on the political and moral relations of 
the world as ever to render it memorable, — marched with a 
select body of men to the oasis containing the temple of Am- 
mon, and obtained from the priests of the god a declaration 
of his divinity; acting in this, perhaps, with policy, — perhaps, 
with vanity. 

The conquests of Alexander can only be compared with 
those of the Arabs or Mongols in rapidity. Darius having 
assembled another army, his rival hastened from Egypt. On 
the plain between Gaugamela and Arbela, at the foot of the 
Armenian and Koordish momitains, he encountered the host 
of Darius, composed, it is said, of a million of men, while 33i 



70 HISTORY OF THE WQRLD. PART I. 

the Grecian troops were, at most, 50,000 men. The Per- 
sians were utterly routed ; Darius fled to the north-eastern 
provinces of his kingdom, and Babylon and Susa fell into the 
hands of the conqueror. Persepolis and Ecbatana shared 
their fate. Meantime Darius was murdered by Bessus, gov- 
ernor of Bactria. According to oriental maxims, Alexander 
was now king, and he resolved to avenge the death of his 
predecessor : he invaded Bactria, put to death Bessus, who 
had assumed the diadem, and conquered the whole of those 
northern provinces of the Persian empire. He founded cities 
in Bactria and Sogdiana, and then directed his course towards 
India. From the southern part of Balkh he marched through 
Candahar,* Ghizni, and Caubul, to the Indus. Though val- 
iantly opposed by the natives, the predecessors of the modern 
Seeks, he was victorious, and still advanced, till the discon- 
tent of his troops obliged him to return : he proceeded south- 
wards along the river, sent a fleet under Nearchus from the 
(ndus to the Persian Gulf, and, with a great loss of men and 
beasts, made his way across the deserts into Persia. Shortly 
B c afterwards he met his death from drunkenness, or poison, at 
324 Babylon, in the thirty-second year of his age. 

Alexander's great object seems to have been the establish- 
ment of one great and permanent empire, of which the dif- 
ferent parts would be united by mutual political and com- 
mercial advantages. Hence he sought to do away all nationa* 
prejudices, and make his different subjects feel themselves 
one people. To attain this object, he founded those numerous 
Grecian cities in various parts of his oriental dominions, and 
had he lived a few years longer he might possibly have, in a 
great measure, accomplished what he aimed at. But his 
early death frustrated all these great projects, and the am- 
bition of his generals speedily pulled down the fabric he was 
erecting. 

Division of Alexander s Dominions. 

Alexander died without appointing a successor. The queen 
Roxana, was pregnant, and he had a half-brother, named 
Philip Aridseus, who was simple. When dying, he had given 
his ring to Perdiccas. After much warm dispute among the 
generals, they came to the resolution that Alexander (Rox- 
ana's son) and Philip AridsBus should be proclaimed kings ; 
that Perdiccas should be guardian, and that each general 
should take the charge of a province. The partition of offices 

* The city of Candahar is said to have been founded by Alexander. Its 
name seems evidently derived from his. He is called in the East Tscander, 
»nd, rejecting the first syllable, Cander and Candakar are not unlike. 




71 



CHAP. V. ALEXANDER AND HIS SUCCESSORS. 73 

and provinces was thus made: — Perdiccas had no prov- 
ince, but was commander-in-chief of the army: Antipater 
and Craterus had charge of the European dominions ; Seleu- 
cus, of Babylon; Ptolemy, of Egypt, Libya, and part of Ara- 
bia; Leonatus, of Mysia; Antigonus, of Phrygia, Lycia, and 
Pamphylia ; Lysimachus, of Macedonian Thrace ; Laomedon 
had Syria; Python, Media; Menander, Lydia; &c. &c. To 
the valiant Eumenes was assigned Cappadocia, whose inhab- 
itants were yet to be subdued. 

The kings were only such in name, and these Gr^sian sa- 
traps saw and grasped at the opportunity of making them- 
snlves independent princes. A period of unceasing tumult, 
war, and murder, formed the first sixteen years that succeed- 
ed the death of Alexander. Perdiccas first conceived the 
plan of gaining the empire by destroying the governors, one 
after another. This plan was facilitated by their mutual 
animosities, or their contests with those over wtom they 
ruled. Ptolemy, the most powerful of the governors, was 
singled out as the first object of attack. Perdiccas led an g ^ 
army into Egypt, but was murdered by his own mutinous 321 
troops, 

Craterus fell in a battle against Eumenes, and Antipater 
remained sole regent of Macedon. He died shortly after, 319 
having appointed Polysperchon to succeed him. Polysper- 
chon joined the party of Olympias, the mother of Alexander. 
Aridaeus and his wife were put to death, and the friends of 
Antipater persecuted. The nobles clung to his son Cassan- 
der, and Olympias expiated her crimes by a violent death. 315. 

Antigonus took and put to death Eumenes, who maintained 
the rights of Alexander's family. He now ruled over all 
Lesser Asia, wrested Syria and Phoenicia from Ptolemy, and 
drove Seleucus from Babylon. His valiant son Demetrius 
passed over to Greece, and restored the cities to freedom ; 
then collected a fleet, and defeated that o£ Ptolemy oif Cy- 307 
prus. His father now assumed the title of ki7ig^ and his ex- 
ample was followed by the other governors. The family of 
Alexander was now extinct, Roxana and her son having been 
put to death by Cassander. But Antigonus's reign was of 
short duration : his ambition was too inordinate ; and a l«agu« 
was formed against him by Ptolemy, Seleucus, Lysimachus, 
and Cassander. Antigonus fell, in his 80th year, in battle 301 
against his rivals, on the field of Ipsus, in Phrygia, and the 
f ictors shared his dominions among them. 

The dommions of Alexander were now divided int« fo'ir 



B. C. 



74 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART 1 

great kingdoms. Macedon, with a part of Greece ; Thrace ; 
Syria, with all Upper Asia ; Egypt, with Cyrene and Cyprus. 

Macedon. 

Cassander, when he had destroyed the family of Alexan- 
der,- took the title of king. His vicious and feeble sons lost 
their lives and the throne, which was seized on by Derae 
trius, son of Antigonus: he was expelled by Pyrrhus, th 

287. Epirote ; and Pyrrhus, by Lysimachus, king of Thrace. Du 
ring sixteen years, twelve kings of different houses governed 
the paternal dominions of Alexander. In the time of these 
kings, an army of Kelts devastated Macedon, penetrated into 
Greece, and advanced to pillage the temple of Delphi. The 
Greeks rolled down rocks from the heights ; thunder roared 
through the mountains; — the terrified barbarians fled, and 
the god got the renown of defending his temple. 

Antigonus Gonatas, son of Demetrius, a man of prudence 
and humanity, raised Macedon out of the rum into which it 
had been plunged ; and, during a reign of forty years, he was 
the protector of Greece. His son, Demetrius II., who suc- 

243. ceeded him, emulated his virtues. Demetrius dying, lefl an 
infant son, Philip, whose uncle and guardian, Antigonus, sur- 
named Doson, married the widow of the late king, and usurp- 
ed the kingdom, which he governed with ability for eleven 
years, and then left to the lawful heir, Philip. This prince 

298. mixed himself in the affairs of Greece, and was recognized 
as sovereign lord of that country. War took place, in conse 
quence, between him and the Romans, and Philip was doi 
feated, obliged to withdraw his garrisons from Greece, reduce 

243 his shipping, and pay the expenses of the war. His son Per- 
seus renewed the war with Rome, but was taken, and died 
in prison ; and Macedon was shortly afterwards reduced to a 
Roman provmce. 

The Macedonian kingdom extended from the Propontis, 
through Thrace, to the mountains of ^Etolia, lying at the 
north of the country of Greece. 

Greece. 

We have seen all Greece submit to Philip and Alexander. 
After the death of the latter, some unavailing efforts had 
been made, especially by Athens, to re-establish the ancient 
freedom ; but they were always obliged to bow their necks, 
once more, to the Macedonian yoke. There was no union 
among them ; they pursued their old feuds and petty contests, 
instead of combining for a common object ; and their country 



CHAP. V. ALEXAIVDER AND HIS SUCCESSORS. 75 

was continually ravaged by the armies of the contending 
generals of Alexander. 

Sparta, which had sulkily refused to take part in the con- 
quest of the East, and had waged an unsuccessful war against 
Antipater, had long since seen the decline of her Lycurgean 
constitution. In vain the patriotic A.gis sought to bring his 
country back to her former state ; his life atoned for his op- 
position to the tyrannic oligarchs. Sparta became the do- 
minion of the most odious of tyrants ; she joined the Romans 
against Macedon, and then changed sides, and she ended by 
becoming, like the other Grecian states, a part of the Roman 
dominions. 

The cities of Achsea renewed among themselves an old 
confederacy, named the Achaean league, which, under the 
guidance of Aratus, labored with vigor for the freedom of 
Greece against Macedon: gradually, other states, and 
amongst them, Athens, joined the league. The ^tolian towns 
formed a similar union ; but their enmity with the Achaeans 
and Sparta prevented their arriving to any importance. Civil 
discord, the perpetual bane of Greece, gave the Romans the 
wished-for opportunity of intermeddling in its affairs, Corinth 
was taken and destroyed ; and Greece reduced to a Roman 
province, under the name of Achsea. The last of the heroes 
of Greece was Philopcemen, the Arcadian general of the b c 
Achaean league, justly styled the last of the Greeks. Two 183 
thousand years have rolled away since the death of Philopce- 
men, without Greece, till of late, producing a warrior for in- 
dependence. May she derive wisdom from the past, and 
avoid the errors by which she lost her freedom ! 

Thrace. 

Lysimachus made himself king of Thrace ; he conquered 3214, 
Macedon, and was also master of a part of the countries 
about the Euxine. His reign was the flourishing period of 
Thrace; but it was of short duration. Lysimachus fell in 
oattle against Seleucus : the Gauls ravaged the land, which 
sometimes obeyed Syrian, sometimes Egyptian, princes. The 
native chiefs recovered their power. King Cotys, one of these 
princes, formed an alliance with the Romans : king Sasales 4*3 
gave up Thrace to them. 

At this period, some independent states arose in Lesser 
Asia, which we shall notice in this place. 

Bithynia. 

This country, stretching along the Black Sea to the Pro- 
lontis and the Hellespont, was, at one time, tributary to the 



76 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

Lydians, and then to the Persians. After the death of Alex- 
ander, a native chief, named Bas, expelled Calanthus, the 
Macedonian governor. Internal troubles continually agitated 
this state. Nicomedes I., to keep his throne, allied hhnself 
with the Gauls, to whom he assigned a district, called, from 
them, Galatia. Prusias is known by Annibal's having sought 
in vain a refuge at his court. Nicomedes II. was expelled by 
B. c. Mithridates, and restored by the Romans ; to whom Nice- 
76. medes IV., having no children, made over his dominions. 

Pergamus. 

The ancient Mysia vanished in the Lydian and Persian 
empires. While Lysimachus, king of Thrace, ruled this part 
of Asia, nis lieutenant, an eunuch named Philetasrus, made 
himself independent, and established a kingdom, called Per- 
283. gamus, from its capital. He was succeeded by his nephew, 
Eumenes, who extended his dominions considerably. Attains 
II. was the first who took the title of king. The most cele- 
brated of these kings was Eumenes II., in whose reign the 
pergament, or parchment, was invented. His dominions em- 
braced the Thracian Chersonese, and Asia this side of Tau- 
rus, consequently, Mysia, Lydia, the two Phrygias, and l,y- 
83. caonia. His son. Attains III., having no heirs, left his king- 
dom to the Romans. 

Pontus. 

This country, named from the Pontus Euxinus, on which 
it lay, formed a part of northern Lesser Asia, east of Bithy- 
nia. It was included in the Persian dominions, and was 
given as an hereditary fief by Darius I. to his son Artabazes. 
Ariobarzanes, one of his successors, having obtained also 

o65, Lydia, Phrygia, and Ionia, became so powerful, that he cast 
off the Persian yoke. Mithridates II. voluntarily surrendered 
his kingdom to Alexander. When, after that monarch's 
death, Antipater attempted to seize this state, the Pontic 
prince resisted, and maintained his independence. Succeed- 

124. ing princes enlarged their dominions. Mithridates VII., the 
greatest of them, was talented and ambitious : yet, though 
desirous of conquest, he sought to avoid a conflict with the 
Romans, at that time masters of a great part of Lesser Asia. 
He therefore turned his arms eastwards, and conquered the 
tribes round the Euxine as far as the Tauric Chersonese. But 
two such powerful neighbors could not continue long without 
a rupture ; war broke out between them on account of Pam- 
phylia and Cappadocia, and during a space of thirty years the 
gallant and indefatigable king of Pontus sustained a wg.r 



CHAP. V. ALEXANDER AND HIS SUCCESv?ORS. 79 

against the arms of Rome, conducted by Sulla, Lucullus, and b. 
Pompeius. Poison, administered by his own hand, terminated 6 
his eventful life. His grandson Darius reigned over Pontus ; 
but its glory and its power were gone, and it was finally, by 
the emperor Nero, reduced to the form of a Roman pi-ov- 
ince. 

Armenia. 

This mountainous but fruitful country appears not till late 
in the history of Asia. It was divided into Great and Little 
Armenia, and had obeyed successively the Assyrian, Persian, 
and Syrian empires. In the reign of Antiochus III., Artaxias, 190 
the governor of Great, and Zariades of Little Armei 'a, made 
themselves independent. Tsgranes, a descendant of the 
former, united the two Armenias, and was superior lord of 
Syria and Cappadocia, His father-in-law, Mithridates VII., 
involved him in a war with the Romans, and he lost Little 
Armenia and Syria. Tigranes II. was put to death by order 
of the Roman emperor Tiberius. Little Armenia had been 
given after the fall of Mithridates to Dejotarus, a Galatian, 
and then to other foreigners. After this period it vanishes 
out of history, and Great Armenia becomes the apple of dis- 
cord between the Romans and Parthians. After many con- 
flicts between the contending parties, it had again kings of 
its own in the time of the emperor Hadrian, and was finally 
absorbed in tlie Persian empire of the Sassanides. 

Syria. 

Seleucus, named Nicator, was, after the death of Alexan- 
der, governor of Babylon. He extended his power eastwards 
into India, and, aftei- the battle of Ipsus, he became master of 
Syria, and possessor of all or nearly all the countries that had 
composed the Persian empire. Seleucus was an active, pru- 
dent prince, an encourager of trade, and a founder of cities. 
With him the Syrian empire rose ; after his death it gradually 
declined. His son Antiochus obtained the name of Soter, the 
Saver, from having delivered Lesser Asia from the Gauls ; 
but he was forced to acknowledge the independence of Bi- 
thynia and Pergamus. Antiochus II., named, by his flatter- 
ers, Theos, the God, was weak and effeminate. The Parthi- 252, 
ans cast off the yoke of Syria, and their example was fol- 
lowed by the Bactrians. Seleucus II., seeking to regain the 
lost supremacy, died a prisoner in Parthia. Antiochus the 
Great fought in vain against the Parthians and Bactrians : he 
reduced the rebel governors of Media and Persia; but his de- 
feat by the Egyptians at Raphia lost him Palestine and Ccelo- 



80 HISTORY or THE WOKI-D. PART I. 

B. c. Syria. Engaging' in war with the Romans, he invaded 
190 Greece;, but was repelled ; and the battle of Magnesia checked 
his career of ambition. The terms on which the haughty 
senate dictated peace were, the surrender of all the countries 
on this side Taurus, payment of 15,0(X) talents to the Romans, 
and 400 to Eumenes of Pergamus ; the delivery of Annibal, 
and the sending of his son as a hostage to Rome. 

The Syrian power was now at an end. Roman influence 
was paramount : all efforts to shake it off were futile. Murder 
and treason disputed for the throne : neighbors and subjects 
took advantage of its weakness. Parthia rapidly extended its 
conquests. Judea and the Armenias asserted their indepen- 
dence. The empire was finally contracted to Proper Syria 
and Phoenicia. Tigranes of Armenia seized on Syria; and 
64 the Romans gave the empire of the Seleucides its coup de 
grace, by declaring Syria a Roman province. 

Judea. 

Only a small portion of Israel took advantage of Cyru<?s 
permission to return to their own country. Those that did 
return were chiefly of the tribe of Judah ; and hence the na- 
tion is in future called Jews. They were feeble, and they 
continued in humble obedience to the Persian monarchy. On 
its destruction, they obeyed Alexander and his successors, 
first the king of Egypt, and then of Syria. 

Their rulers had hitherto respected their religion. Antio- 
chus Epiphanes attempted to force them to adopt Grecian 
rites. The Maccabees, a race of heroes, like the judges of 
old, arose. Mattathias assembled bands in the mountains, and 
thence fell on the Syrians. His valiant son, Judas Macca- 
beus, continued the warfare, defeated several Syrian armies, 
and entered Jerusalem in triumph. He formed an alliance 
with the Romans. The brothers of Judas, Jonathan, Simon, 
and John Hyrcanus, followed up his successes so ably after 
his death, that the Syrians were forced to acknowledge the 
independence of Judea. 

Uniting in his own person the dignities of high-priest and 
prince, John Hyrcanus extended his dominion over Galilee, 
the country beyond Jordan, Idumea, &c, ; and the Jewish 
state became under him of greater extent than it had been 
since the days of David and SolomcMi. His son Aristobulus 
107 took the title of king. 

The Jewish power was not of long continuance. Factions 

and feuds broke out: the throne was often disputed. The 

Romans interposed to settle the succession. Pompeius led 

AS. Aristobulus and his sons to Rome, and gave the throne and 



CH.4P. V. ALEXANDER AND HIS SUCCESSORS. 81 

priesthood to his brother Hyrcanus, placing" a Roman governor b a 
by his side. The troubles, however, still continued ; and the *^^- 
Romans at last set the Idumean Antipater over Judea, whose 
son Herod became king, a prince well known for his cruelty. 
On the death of Herod, the Romans divided his kingdom 
among his three sons. The whole was reunited under his a o. 
grandson Agrippa, and after his death reduced to a Roman 44. 
province. 

Parthia. 

Parthia is the country lying between* Media and Ana, 
south of Hyrcania. Its inhabitants had obeyed the Persian 
and Syrian monarchs: the tyranny of a governor of the 
latter drove them into rebellion. Arsaces, a man of humble 
birth, but military talent, placed himself at their head, and 
achieved their independence. The succeeding Arsacides, as 
the kings were named, enlarged their dominions, which 
gradually extended from India to the Euphrates, from the 
Caspian to the Arabian sea. When the Romans became 
masters of Lesser Asia, proximity produced enmity, and the 
Parthians were the only people who resisted Rome with suc- 
cess. Crassus, who led the first Roman army over the Eu- 
phrates, was defeated and slain. In the civil wars of the Ro- 
mans they also took a share, siding with Pompeius against 
Caesar ; and with the latter's murderers against Octavianus 
and Antonius. Ventidius, the general of the latter, gave 
them a decisive overthrow. 

The remaining history of the Parthians offers only, exter- 
nally, continued wars with various success against the Ro- 
mans ; internally, the usual series of murder, usurpation, and 
cruelty, which characterize the monarchies of Asia. The 
twenty-ninth of the Arsacides was driven from his throne by 
Artaxerxes, a descendant of the ancient line of Persia ; and 
a new dynasty, that of the Sassanides, so named from Sassan, 
the founder's father, was established. 

Egypt. 

Egypt was the most fortunate of the provinces in the char- 
acter of its governor. Ptolemy, son of Lagus, was a man of 
prudence and moderation : his first object was to form there a 
Grecian state without oppressing the original inhabitants. 
Peace was necessary for the execution of his judicious plans, 
and he never, but when constrained, took part in the quarrels 
of the other governors. After the battle of Ipsus, to the gain- 
ing of which he had mainly contributed, he also assumed the 
title of king. He then turned all his thoughts to the benefit- 



g2 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. 1*ART I. 

ing of his kingdom ; he beautified Alexandria, built the Pharu8 
light-house, encouraged every kind of trade, collected a li- 
brary, and invited learned men from all parts to Alexandria. 
His empire included Egypt, Libya, Cyrene, part of Arabia, 
Palestine, and Coelosyria; and flourished each day more aid 
more, in consequence of his wise regulations and just govern- 
ment. Ptolemy 11., named Philadelphus, trod in the foot- 
steps of his father, and equalled or excelled him in his pat- 
ronage of learning. He much extended and facilitated the 
trade to India, by repairing the canal from the Nile to the 
Red Sea ; and, still more, by forming the harbor of Berenice 
B. c. on that sea. Ptolemy III, Evergetes, imitated his father and 
221. grandfather, and closed the series of the virtuous Ptolemies. 
After the death of Evergetes, there reigned in Egypt ten 
degenerate descendants of Ptolemy Lagus. Discord agitated 
this royal house, like others ; murders were perpetrated for 
empire. The constant interference of the Romans alone 
preserved it from dissolution. With their consent, and by the 
will of his father, the last Ptolemy espoused his sister Cleo- 
patra, and shared his empire with her. Driven from Egypt, 
she sought the protection of Caesar, who re-established her as 
sole ruler. After his death, she united herself to Antonius ; 
and, on his death, poisoned herself, rather than grace the 
30 triumph of Octavianus. Egypt was then reduced to the form 
of a Roman province. 

The kingdoms of Europe and Asia, whose destinies we 
have traced in the preceding pages, fell, as we have seen, 
almost all into the spreading empire of Rome ; a state w hich, 
as will soon appear, grew up from the smallest origin, and, 
gathering strength from every storm that assailed her, at 
length embraced nearly the whole civilized world beneath 
her shade. To her we now hasten, previously sketching the 
early history of her first transmarine rival, 

Carthage. 

At an early period of history a colony of Tyrians, said to 
have been conducted by Dido, sister to the king of Tyre, 
founded on the coast of Africa the city of Carthage. Pos- 
sessed of the commercial enterprise and dexterity of their 
countrymen, they rapidly extended their trade and their 
dominions. Numerous cities on the coast of Africa were 
tounded by them: they trafficked with the interior: their 
ships sailed to the south beyond the Canary isles ; northwards 
tbey visited the shores of Gaul and Britain, and, perhaps, 
those of the Baltic : tliey wrought the silver mines of Spain : 
their colonies occupied the isles of the Mediterranean. 



CHAP. VT. ROME TILL THE PUNIC WARS. ' 85 

The political constitution of Carthage claimed the admi- 
ration of Aristotle. Two magistrates, named SufFetes, or 
judges,* chosen annually from the most distinguished families, 
were at the head of the government : under them were live 
persons who managed the chief affairs. All these magistrates 
were unpaid. The senate was composed of 100 members: if 
they and the five agreed on any matter, it was put into exe- 
cution; if they disagreed, it was brought before the as- 
eembly of the people : the decision of the last was conclu 
give. Morals were more attended to in Carthage than in 
most Grecian cities, and there was a magistrate there cor- 
responding with the Roman censor. The popular power was 
not so dangerous in Carthage as in Greece, the people being 
of a grave and solemn character, and not to be led astray by 
the arts of demagogues. Their manners were rugged, their 
religion dark and cruel. 

Six wars were waged by the Carthaginians in Sicily. The » c 
first was caused by the people of Egesta calling on them for 413 
aid against Dionysius of Syracuse. In this war fortune 
favored the Punic arms. A second and a third war ensued 
between them and the prince of Syracuse, still to the advan- 
tage of Carthage. During a fourth, Dionysi'is died, and his 
son made peace. The Carthaginian arms were, for the fifth 
time, directed against Syracuse, in support of Icetas, tyrant 
of Leontium. Timoleon, the Corinthian, commanded the 
Syracusan troops, and forced Carthage to restore the Grecian 
towns to freedom, to recognize the river Halycus as their 
boundary, and to engage not to meddle with the affairs of 
Sicily. Agathocles was the occasion of the Carthaginians 
again engaging in hostilities with Syracuse ; and the latter 
was so hard pressed as to be forced to call on Pyrrhus, king 
of Epirus, for assistance. Carthage was successful against 
Pyrrhus ; but this war involved her in hostilities with Rome, 
and thereby caused her ruin. 



CHAP. VI. 

ROME TILL THE PUNIC WARS. 

Rome under Kings. 

While empire after empire was flourishing and falling in 
Asia, while the various states of Greece were contending 
with each other, or occupied by internal changes, there was 

* Skofetim is the Hebrew name of the Judges of Israel. 

8 



86 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

growing up, from the smallest beginnings, a nation destined 
to be the future mistress of all these states and empires. 

Italy, the peninsula westward of Greece, was originally 
inPiabited by tribes of an unknown race. The Pelasgians, 
that extensive people who settled in Greece, also Cftablished 
themselves in Italy. They inhabited the plains and the 
coasts, and were peaceful and agricultural: the mountain 
tribes gradually encroached upon them and conquered them. 
On the banks of the river Tiber, a portion of this people, 
named Siculans, was established : a tribe of the mountains, 
named Aborigines by the historians, invaded their country, 
expelled a part, and conquered and settled themselves among 
the remainder; and the united people were called Latins. 
A portion of them lived in villages, on some hills adjacent to 
the Tiber. Another mountain-race, called the Sabines, after- 
s. c. wards advanced towards the sea, and wrested from the in- 
'^3. habitants of the banks of the Tiber a part of their territory. 
These nations finally coalesced, and formed one people ; their 
joined city was named Rome, possibly its old Pelasgian ap- 
^ pellation, and it was governed by kings, chosen alternately by 
one of the combined nations out of the other. 

Such is the most probable account of the origin of Rome 
which the researches of modern times have been able to 
give.* A different and more romantic tale appears in the an- 
cient historians ; for the early history of Rome was not writ- 
ten till she had become a great and powerful state, and then 
inquirers could meet no narratives of the days long past, 
save what was contained in popular tradition and popular 
poetry, which recorded marvels of Rome's descent from wide- 
famed Troy, the landing of ^Eneas in Latium, the love of 
the god Mars for the vestal Rhea, her bearing twins by the 
god, their exposure in the Tiber, their being saved and 
suckled by a wolf, and fed by a woodpecker till found by the 
shepherd Faustulus, their finally restoring their grandfather 
to the throne of Alba Longa, the city founded by Ascanius, 
the son of iEneas, and then collecting their fellow-shepherds 
and an indiscriminate rabble, and founding a town named 
Rome, from Romulus, the elder of the twins, on the hills 
where they had been miraculously saved and educated. 
I The religion of Rome having, probably, had a similar origin 
with that of Greece, strongly resembled it ; and the Grecian 
system was, in a great measure, afterwards adopted by the 
Romans. Religion was, however, in Rome, at all times, 
nmch more an affair of state than in Greece. I 

* Niebuhr has been followed in this view of the early history of Rome. 



:;HAP. VI. ROME TILL THE PUNIC WARS. 87 

The first constitution of Rome, whatever her origin, was 
monarcnical. Romulus the warrior, and Numa the legislator, 
who appear in history as her two first kings, it is possible, 
never existed. The first undoubted historic fact of this early 
period, is the mig-ration of the Albans to Rome when their 
city was destroyed, the Roman writers say, by Tullus, the 
king of Rome ; strong circumstances intimate, by the Latins, 
who afterwards possessed her territory. Ancus, the suc- 
ceeding monarch, extended the Roman dominions to the sea, 
and built the port of Ostia at the mouth of the Tiber. His 
successor was named Tarquinius. The legendary history 
says he was a Tuscan of Greek descent, and, in its usual 
style, marks his arrival at Rome by a miracle : probability is 
on the side of the supposition of his having been a Latin, or 
of some kindred nation. He greatly extended the Roman 
power, increased and beautified the city of Rome, embanked 
the Tiber, built the huge sewers for the drainage of the city, 
which still exist, and commenced the erection on the Capitol 
of the united temples of the three great gods of Rome, 

Tarquinius fell, it is said, by assassination ; and the vacant 
throne was occupied by an Etrurian named Mastarna, a con- 
dottiere, or leader of mercenary troops, who had come to 
Rome and entered the service of Tarquinius. Having changed 
his appellation, he appears in history under the name of Ser- 
vius Tullius ; but the legend of Servius, born of a maid-ser- 
vant who had conceived by the fire-god, and around whose 
infant brows lambent flames had played, bears not the slight- 
est resemblance to the history of the Etrurian captain Mas- 
tarna. Servius continued the works commenced by Tarquin- 
ius, and immortalized his memory by the constitution which 
bears his name. A conspiracy of the principal citizens, who 
were displeased at the changes he had introduced, deprived 
Servius of his life ; and his throne was occupied by a grand- 
son of Tarquinius. This monarch was magnificent and princely 
in his ideas ; he was successful in war, and raised Rome to a 
high degree of power ; but he is said to have been haughty, 
cruel, and tyrannic. An act of violence done by one of his 
sons is related to have roused the indignation of the people ; 
Tarquinius and his family were expelled, and the kingly au- 
thority abolished. 

The Romans were originally divided into three Tribes, 
each tribe subdivided into ten Curias, and each of those latter 
into ten Gentes, or houses. A representative of each gens 
sat in the senate. In the time of the earlier kings we find, 
howeve . but two tribes sending members to the senate ; the 
third was subsequently admitted to that privilege. These 



88 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART L 

three tribes were the original citizens of Rome, the Populus ; 
and there were, besides them and their slaves, a body of peo- 
ple called Clients, foreigners, who, from various causes, had 
removed from their own country to Rome, and settled there 
under the protection of Roman citizens, who, as their patrons, 
are called Patres and Patricians, words originally synony- 
mous. In the reign of Tullus, a new body began to be formed 
by the migration of the Albans to Rome ; this was called the 
Plehs. It contained all ranks of society, both nobles and com 
mons, of the migrating people, and mostly retained its prop- 
erty in its lands ; but it had no share in the government, or 
in the public lands, which were enjoyed by the patricians on 
the payment of a tenth of their produce to the state : it formed 
the infantry of the army, had no right of intermarriage with 
the patricians, lived apart from them, and was opposed to them 
in interest. 

The patrician gentes, being a closed body, did not admit 
of their vacancies being filled up, and they continually dimin- 
ished in number. The plebeians were, on the other hand, 
receiving constant accessions. Tarquinius I., after a good 
deal of opposition, succeeded in forming three new tribes out 
of the plebeians, and adding them to the patrician tribes. His 
successor went still further ; he divided all the plebeians into 
thirty local tribes, independent of the patrician ones; and 
then, to combine the two orders more effectually, constituted 
a mingled aristocracy and timocracy, by dividing all the peo- 
ple into Centuries, for the purposes of war, and of passing 
laws and electing magistrates. It was thus composed:* the 
three original tribes and the three formed by Tarquinius were 
first ; to these Servius added twelve centuries, composed of 
the most wealthy of the plebeians ; and these eighteen were 
to supply the cavalry of the army: hence the whole were 
called Equites. The remainder of the plebeians were di- 
vided, according to their property, into five Classes, subdi- 
vided into centuries ; and the rest of the people were put into 
other centuries. The classes fiirnished the infantry of the 
army ; those not in the classes, the baggage-train, &c. When 
the centuries were assembled in the Field of Mars, their place 
of meeting, laws, and other matters, previously prepared by 
the senate, were laid before them ; the equestrian centuries 
voted first, and then the first class : and the number of cen- 
turies in this class was so great in proportion to those in the 
remaining ones, that if they agreed with the equestrian cen- 
turies, the majority was attained, and there was no necessity 
tor calling up any more of the classes. The patricians had 
afterwards, in their curiae, the power of adopting or rejecting 



CHAP. VI. ROME TILL THE PUNIC WARS. 91 

the measure which had passed the centuries. The legislator's 
object of giving power to wealth and birth was thus fully at- 
tained ; and but for the useless injustice of the patricians, who 
could not endure to part with ever so little of their privileges, 
Rome might have become, long ere she did, the mistress of 
the world. 

The form of government adopted by the Romans on the 
expulsion of their kings, was that of placing the executive in 
the hands of two magistrates, to be chosen annually from the 
patricians. These magistrates were originally called Praetors, 
afterwards Consuls, and they held the full kingly power, only 
divested of its priestly dignity. 

Rome had attained a high degree of power under her kings. 
By a treaty made in the first year of the republic with the b. c. 
Carthaginians, which has fortunately been preserved, it ap- SOS- 
pears that she was mistress of the whole coast from Ostia to 
Terracina, and traded with Sicily, Sardinia, and Africa. 

The Tuscans — War with Porsenna. 

The country to the right of the Tiber was inhabited by a 
people called Etrurians, or Tuscans. Manners, language, and 
religion distinguished them from the neighboring nations. 
They possessed twelve cities in the country called Etruria, 
and an equal number in northern Italy, about the Po. The 
current opinion was, that they were a colony from Mseonia, 
who came by sea and conquered the inhabitants of Etruria, 
and then extended their conquests northwards: the more 
probable supposition is, that they were a nation who entered 
Italy on the north-east, and spread their conquests southwards. 
At the period we now treat of, they were fast approaching 
the acme of their power, which, though brilliant, was tran- 
sient ; for liberty was not in Etruria : no free land owners, 
like the Roman plebs, formed for her an invincible infantry. 
The Tuscan Lucumones, or nobles, ruled over vassals similar 
to the Helots of Laconia, or the Penestae of Thessaly. 

It was to this people that the Tarquinii addressed them- 
selves for aid to regain their lost dominions, after an attempt 
to recover them by treachery, in which even the sons of 
Brutus, the expeller of the tyrant, were engaged, had failed. 
The Veientians are said to have taken arms in their favor ; 
a battle took place, in which the consul Brutus, and Aruns, a 
son of the banished tyrant, fell by mutual wounds, and vic- 
tory declared for Rome. The legend relates, that Tarquuiius 
then invoked the aid of Porsenna, king of Clusium, a powerful 
Tuscan prince, who marched against Rome ; and though his- 
tory seeks to veil the disgrace of surrender, by marvellous 



^2 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART i 

tales of the valor of Gocles, the intrepidity of Mucius, the 

heroism of the female hostages, and the magnanimity of Por- 

senna, the ungrateful truth is still apparent, that Rome was 

amerced in one-third of her territory, and proliibited the use 

of iron, except for agricultural purposes. The Etrurians now 

extended their dominion into Latium ; before Aricia they met 

a defeat from Aristodemus, the Greek tyrant of Cuma ; and 

Rome seized this opportunity of regaining independence. 

Tarquinius and his claims had been neglected by Porsenna. 

c. He now roused the Latins to arms in his cause. A great and 

3- decisive battle is said to have taken place on the banks of the 

lake Regillus, in which the fortune of Rome again triumphed, 

ftnd the baffled tyrant fled to Aristodemus at Cuma, where 

he died. 

Dictator — Secession — Tribunes 

The constitution devised by Servius was just and equita- 
ble, calculated to unfold and bring to maturity the various 
elements which composed the Roman state ; but it was check- 
ed and nearly smothered by Tarquinius the Tyrant. On his 
expulsion, the patricians, who felt their need of the cordial 
support of the plebeians, restored it in some measure. The 
consuls were elected by the centuries, and the Valerian law 
secured the plebeians in their life, property, and honor. 

But when Tarquinius was no longer an object of terror, 
and the Etrurian and Latin wars were ended, the patricians 
sought to bring back matters to their former state, or rather 
to a worse ; for during the monarchy, the king was the natu- 
ral protector of the plebeians. By the Valerian law, the ple- 
beians had been given the same right of appeal from the sen- 
tence of a magistrate, and of trial by their peers, which had 
always been possessed by the patricians ; but this extended 
to only a mile from the city. This right of appeal lay even 
498. against the sentence of the consuls. To evade this law, and 
deprive the plebeians of their safety even within the city, a 
magistracy named the Dictatorship was instituted, an office 
of Latin origin. The dictator was chosen by the senate, and 
approved of by the patricians: his power while in office was 
regal ; no appeal lay from his sentence. At first even the 
patricians had no appeal, though they afterwards obtained it. 
It was, in fact, a power directed against the plebeians, who 
were always terrified at the creation of this magistrate. 

The patricians kept exclusive possession of the public do- 
mains. Having the government in their own nands, they no 
• longer paid a tenth to the state. Taxes, wars, famine, re- 
duced great numbers of the plebeians to distress ; they were 



CHAt. VI. ROME TILL THE PUNIC WAltS. 93 

fbrced to borrow money at an usurious inte. °st. ^he p-'tri 
cians, or their clients in their name, were tlie pixr^cipaj. credj' 
tors. Tlie law of Servius, forbidding pledging of tn^ person 
for debt, had been abolished. The Nexi* \vere continually 
brought before the praetor's tribunal, and made Addicti, 
Every patrician house was a jail for debtors ; and after ever^ 
court-day, in times of distress, droves of sentenced debtors 
with their sons and grandchildren, might be seen driven off 
in chains to these dungeons. 

The grievances of the plebeians were intolerable, yet then 
appeared no remedy. While they were in this state of un- 
certainty, an old man one day broke from his prison in chains, 
and covered with rags : he appealed to the Quirites to pro- 
tect him, enumerated the battles he had fought, recounted 
the causes of his misfortunes, and showed the bloody marks 
of his creditor's cruelty. The pity and indignation of the 
people were excited ; all were clamorous for relief. Tht 
senate knew not what to do ; they ordered a levy against the 
Volscians ; the people refused to enlist. The consul Servilius 
issued a proclamation allowing those who were in slavery foi 
debt to serve, and declaring that as long as a soldier was un 
der arms, his family should remain in undisturbed enjoyment 
of his property. The legions were filled up, and the army 
soon returned covered with conquest and laden with booty , 
but the hopes of the plebeians were disappointed. Next yea;; 
they again refused to serve in the legions. Valerius was 
made dictator, and he issued a proclamation similar to that of 
Servilius. The people trusted in the character of Valerius, 
and the power of the dictatorship. The army was victorious ; 
but even Valerius could not overcome the obduracy of the 
senate, influenced by the unbending tyrannic spirit of Appius 
Claudius. 

The dictator's army had been disbanded; those of the con- 
suls were still in the field. An insurrection broke out. The 
legions appointed L. Sicinius Bellutus their leader, crossed 
the Anio, and occupied the Sacred Mount. The plebeians in 
the city and its vicinity retired to the Aventine and Esquiline 
hills of the city: the patricians and their clients occupied the 
Palatine, Capitoline, Quirinal, and Cselian : these were all 
separate and fortified. Matters might have come to blood- 
shed, but that the power of the two parties was pretty nearly 
balanced, and the dread of external enemies made them 
averse to weaken themselves. The patricians formed an al- 

* Those who were in debt under obligation to pay after a certain period 
were caHed JVexi; those who failed to pay and were by the prsetor delivered 
over to their creditors were called Jlddicti. 



B. C 



94 IIISTOI^Y OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

liance with the iiatins: they then deputed ten of the princi- 
pal members of their body to treat with the plebeians, and 
peace was ultimately established and sworn to between the 
two orders. By this the patricians sought to separate the in- 
terest of the multitude from that of the men of rank : to the 
latter they conceded nothing, gave them admittance to none 
of the honors of the state ; to appease the former, they con- 
sented to give force to the Valerian law, to cancel all debts, 
and rele ise all enslaved debtors. But the law of debt re- 
mained unaltered. 

This secession and treaty were rendered memorable by the 
483 institution of the Tribunate, an inviolate popular magistracy, 
established for the protection of the plebs, which proved a 
salutary check on the excesses of either party ; was the chief 
mean of preserving Rome so long from hloody dissensions ; 
but, like every human institution, growing pernicious when 
it had outlived its original purpose, afterwards became a chief 
instrument in the overthrow of liberty. 

Spurius Cassius, and the Agrarian Law. 

The bonds of alliance were now drawn closer between the 
Romans and the Latins, and a third nation, the IIernic4ans, 
was taken into the alliance. According to the terms of it, all 
spoils and conquests were to be divided, share and share 
alike, among the three nations. 

Sp. Cassius Viscellinus, the Roman consul, was the person 
who concluded this league. He, some time after, brought 
forward the first Agrarian law, was accused before the curiae 
of aiming at the sovereignty, was condenmed, and thrown 
from the Tarpeian rock, his house razed, his goods sold, and 
the produce dedicated to Ceres. 

The Roman Agrarian laws have frequently been repre- 
sented as unjust and iniquitous. A moment's consideration 
of their nature will prove such a supposition to be groundless. 
It was the practice of Rome, and the Italian states in general, 
on making a conquest, to take a portion, generally a third, of 
the enemy's land. This then became public land, and was 
occupied for tillage or grazing, by the citizens of the state 
which had acquired it ; they paid a tenth of the produce by 
way of rent, and the land was subject to resumption by the state. 
While the Roman citizens consisted of the three patrician 
tribes alone, there was no cause for murmur ; but when the 
plebs gradually grew up, and as the infantry of the army was 
the chief instrument in the acquisition of public land, they 
naturally claimed to have a share in what was gained. The 
kings, therefore, were in the habit of assigning small portions 



m^P. VI. ROME TILL THE PUNIC WARS. 97 

jf the public land as property to the plebeians, and thus the 
iatter grew, by degrees, to be the only or principal land-own- 
ers in the state. After the expulsion of the Tarquinii, a dis- 
tribution of the crown lands was made among the plebeians; 
but the loss of the lands beyond the Tiber, and the heavy 
weight of taxation which fell almost entirely on them, now 
that the patricians, having gotten the government into their 
own hands, no longer paid the tenths off the public land, 
made the plebeians more clearly discern the injustice with 
which tliey were treated, and be clamorous for an Agrarian 
law, i. e. a law which was not, as has been eironeously sup- 
posed, to take their property from the rich and give it to the 
poor, but which would make the patricians give up a portion 
of the public land which they occupied without paying any 
rent or taxes, to be divided in small lots among those whose 
blood had purchased it. 

The Decemvirs and the Twelve Tables. 

After the death of Cassius, the struggles between the 
orders continued. The Romans were, in fact, two nations 
within the same walls, so distinct as not even to have the 
cannubium or right of intermarriage. The plebeians saw 
that political equality was not yet attainable ; but they felt 
the absolute necessity of legal equality, and they insisted on 
a general code of laws being formed. After a most obstinate 
resistance on the part of the patricians, it was, at length, 
agreed to appoint ten persons to form a code ; and deputies, 
it is added, were sent to the Greek cities in Italy to collect b. c, 
their wisest laws, and bring them home for the use of the 455 
legislators. 

The legislators were in number ten, hence called Decem- 
virs. They were all patricians, and invested with unlimited 
powers ; the consulate, tribunate, and qusestorate, were sus- 
pended during their magistracy. The decemvirs proved 
themselves worthy of this confidence. They governed ten 
days alternately, and each member of the college rendered to 
those who appealed from the sentence of his colleagues the 
assistance which the tribunes used to give. They collected 
all the former traditionary laws, selected those that were 
salutary, and formed a general code, instead of the former 
partial and local rights. The two orders were formed into 
one nation, the patricians and their clients being received 
into the plebeian local tribes. The Comitia of the centuries 
were declared to be the sole jurisdiction in capital cases, and 
ai,'y charge affecting liberty and civic rights, and thus the 
9 



98 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

equality of the citizens was decidedly pronounced ; for all or 
ders were comprised in these comitia. 

The decemvirs having, with honor to themselves and ad= 
vantage to the state, performed the duties imposed upon 
them, and drawn up a code in ten tables, laid down their 
office. But, under pretext of something still remaining to be 
done, the office was continued for another year, and ten per- 
sons, five patricians and five plebeians, chosen. These enacted 
two more tables, thus making the whole twelve. But they 
governed with haughtiness and tyranny ; the senate stood in 
awe of them ; the people, having now no tribunitian protec- 
tion, trembled before them, while the younger patricians ex- 
ulted in the license given to them, and maintained the cause 
of the decemvirs. The year passed, — no sign of their laying 
down their office : the tyranny seemed intended to be perpet- 
ual. The lust of Appius, the chief of them, saved the state. 
He had seen Virginia, the daughter of Virginius, a centurion, 
crossing the forum in her way to school ; a freedman of his, 
suborned by him, claimed her as his slave ; her lover hastened 
to the camp to inform her father, who hurried to Rome. Vir- 
ginia was brought before the tribunal of the decemvir, and by 
him assigned as a slave to his freedman : her father, seeing 
the honor of his family about to be stained, caught up a 
butcher's knife and plunged it into the bosom of his innocent 
child ; then, with the bloody weapon reeking in his hand, has- 
tened to the camp, told his comrades what he had done, and 
invoked their aid. The army marched to Rome, and posted 
itself on the Aventine : the decemvirate was abolished, and the 
tribunate of the people restored. Appius and Oppius, tho 
most guilty of the decemvirs, died in prison by their own 
hand ; their colleagues went into voluntary exile. 

Spurius MfBlius. 

The consulate was restored ; two members of the illustrious 
houses of the Valerii and the Horatii were the first consuls. 
They carried laws in favor of plebeian liberty. When their 
year expired, the tribunes brought in a bill to enable the peo- 
ple to choose, at their option, patrician or plebeian consuls. 
The chief patricians assembled to consult how to obviate the 
fancied danger of their order ; C. Claudius even proposed to 
murder the tribunes ; his project was rejected with indigna- 
tion, and the two orders agreed, that, instead of two consuls, 
there should be six military tribunes, three from each ordei, 
placed at the head of the government. But the people, as 
yet, gained not much ; for the patricians, by management and 
union, generally contrived to procure for themRelves the 




Albuquerque. 



99 



CHAP. VI UOME TILL TTiE PUNIC WARS. 101 

whole, or the greater part, of the tribunarian authority. Con 
suls, too, were frequently chosen, and they and military tri- 
bunes alternated. 

On the whole, during this period, the rights of the plebe- 
ians were, advancing-; some of their order became military 
tribunes, the connubium between them and the patricians 
was established, and thus the bonds of amity and kindness be- 
tween the orders were drawn more closely. Yet patrician 
party-spirit and cruelty still occasionally exhibited them- 
selves. A crying sin of the senate of this period was the 
murder of Sp. Mselius, a plebeian knight, who, in a time of 
dearth, expended his private fortune in the purchase of corn 
in Tuscany to distribute among the poor of his order. The 
senate dreaded the influence of Mselius, and feared that he 
might make good the claims of his order to a share in the 
government He was accused of aiming at the tyranny. 
The venerable Cincinnatus was created dictator to avert the 
pretended danger. Mselius was summoned before his tribu- 
nal ; he saw his enemies bent on his destruction, and took 
refuge among the people ; C. Servilius Ahala, the master of 
the knights, pursued and cut him down, when he might have 
seized him and brought him before the dictator's tribunal, 
Party-spirit applauded the deed ; succeeding ages blindly ac- 
quiesced in the applause : the enlightened inquirer now be- 
holds it in all its atrocity, and condemns the illegal and in- 
iquitous procedure. The voice of history cries without ceas- 
ing, Do no evil, for a time will arrive when the truth, how 
artfully soever veiled, will come forth and be apparent. 

Wars anterior to the Gallic Invasion. 

During the period whose internal history we have just 
been tracing, Rome was not free from external disturbance. 
In the year 272, a bloody war broke out between Rome and 
Veii, one of the most powerful of the Etrurian cities. For- 
tune was rather favorable to the latter, for volunteers flocked 
from all parts of Etruria to recruit her forces. The Romans 
saw the advantage to be derived from fixing the seat of war 
in the enemies' country. A fort was raised on the banks of 
the Cremera, a stream in the Veientian territory. The Fabian 
gens undertook the defence of it. They marched out of Rome 
to the number of 306, with their clients, amounting to 4000 
or 5000, and settled there. Notwithstanding a peace, they 
ravaged the country. By a display of booty, the Veientians 
succeeded in drawing the greater part of them into an am- 
bush, where they were cut to pieces; the fort was then 
stormed, and the remainder of the garrison put to the sword. 
9* 



102 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART L 

Tradition relates that of the entire Fabian gens, but one sur- 
vived — a child who had been left at Rome. The Veientians 
now carried on the war vigorously against Rome : they fixed 
their camp on the Janiculum, but were defeated, and their 
well-stored camp became the prey of the victors. 

Almost unceasing warfare prevailed at this period between 
the Romans, the Latins, and Hernicians on the one side, and 
the Volscians and the iEquians on the other, without either 
party acquiring much advantage. A Sabine war, too, termi- 
nated in favor of Rome ; for a kindred stem, the Samnites, 
was now extending itself southwards, and drawing to its ban- 
ners the active and adventurous spirits of the nation. 

The truce with Veii having expired, the war again raged. 
Fidenae revolted, and joined Veii. The seat of war was now 
the left bank of the Tiber. The Etrurians advanced to the 
gates of Rome ; they were repulsed, and forced to retire be- 
yond the Anio. Fidenae was besieged and taken. Another 
truce for twenty years was made with Veii, and indefinitely 
protracted. Veii was a peaceable, trading town ; her desire 
was tranquillity. Rome was a nation of soldiers. Veii sought 
to prolong the truce. Rome, as a hostile race, having burst 
over the Alps, and overrun the Circumpadanian Etruria, 
thought she had now a favorable opportunity for conquering 
her rival, who could not look for aid to the more distant cities 
of Etruria : she therefore refused to protract the truce. Both 
sides took arms. Capena and Falerii alone aided Veii. Con- 
quest of territory was the object of the Romans : regular pay 
was given to the army ; a line of forts was drawn around the 
hostile town ; the siege was extended to a duration equal to 
B c that of Troy. Camillus, one of the greatest names in Roman 
394. story, commanded, and Veii at length fell, entered by a mine 
secretly wrought by the besiegers. The Romans were en- 
riched by the spoil. Camillus sullied his glory by secreting 
a part, for which he went into exile. The taking of Veii is 
an historical fact ; the details are poetic fiction. Who can 
now believe that the formation of the Emissarius, which still 
carries off the superfluous waters of the Alban lake, a passage 
of 3700 paces in length, six feet in height, and three and a 
half in width, was the work of a single year, and executed by 
a people who had little or no interest in th^j adjacent lands, 
and that the fate of a city beyond the Tibei uepended on the 
emission of the waters of that lake ] 

nie Gauls — Capture of Rome. 

Mistress of the Veientian territory, Rome now looked for- 
ward to farther conquest in Etruria ; but a storm, whose first 



CHAP. VI. ROME TILL THE PUNIC WARS. 103 

effects she probably contemplated with complacency, was des- 
tined to crush her for a season to the earth. Rome was to 
fall before the Gauls. 

The Kelts now first appear in history. This race, one ov* 
the first that occupied Europe, inhabited, at this period, Gaul 
and Britain, and a great part of Iberia. Attracted by the 
accounts of the climate and fertility of Italy, a large body 
of the Gauls passed the Alps, and poured down on the coun- 
try about the Po ; they quickly conquered the Etrurians who 
dwelt there ; the Umbrians submitted ; the Gauls extended 
themselves to the Adriatic, crossed the Apennines, and laid 
siege to Clusium in Etruria. The Clusians called on the 
Romans for aid, who sent an embassy to the Gallic camp to 
offer their mediation. This was rejected by the Gauls. The 
Roman envoys entered the town, and, neglectful of the laws 
of nations, took part in a battle. Q. Fabius, one of them, 
slew a Gallic chief, and was recognized. The Grauls dis- 
patched an embassy to Rome to demand the surrender of the 
offenders. This was contumeliously refused. Breathing 
vengeance, they broke up from before Clusium, and marched 
for Rome. At the Allia, eleven miles from the city, they 
met the Roman army. A signal defeat rendered the place s.e 
and the day ever detested in the Roman annals. The Gauls 388 
speedily appeared before the walls of the city, forced the 
gates, and found it deserted, except by a few aged men of 
consular rank. These they slaughtered in cold blood. The 
remainder of the people had sought refuge in the neighboring 
towns : the Vestal virgins and the sacred things had been 
conveyed to Caere ; the Capitol was occupied by the senate, 
and about 1000 of the bravest of the patrician youth. An 
attempt to take the Capitol failed ; the Gauls burned the city 
and employed themselves in plundering excursions into the 
surrounding country. Autumn, then and now the sickly sea- 
son at Rome, came on ; the besiegers died in heaps, a compo- 
sition was proposed, and the Gauls finally agreed, for a thou- 
sand pounds weight of gold, to evacuate Rome, and its ter- 
ritory. Roman vanity invented a tale of Camillus, who had, 
though in exile, been appointed dictator, coming up with his 
army as they were in the act of weighing the gold, and so 
signally defeating the Gauls, that not one survived to carry 
home the news. 

Rebuilding of the City — Manlius, 

Rome was a heap of ruins. Veii equalled it in magnitude, 
and exceeded it in beauty. It was proposed that the Roman 
people should migrate thither : the senate opposed this pio- 



104 fflSTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

jecl; the people were wavering, when a casual word, taken 
as an omen, decided them to remain. Within a year the 
city rose from its ashes with little of beauty or regularity 
Veii was demolished to furnish building materials. 

War was renewed. The Tarquinienses, a people of Etru- 
ria, took the field against the Romans: the Volscians and 
iEquians were again in arms: the Latins and Hernicians, 
though a century had elapsed since Sp. Cassius had formed 
the league between them and the Romans, separated from 
them, and were sometimes opposed to them : the Gauls again 
invaded the Roman territory ; yet the fortune of Rome pre- 
vailed, and her generals triumphed. 

But Rome was internally agitated: the heavy rate of in- 
terest, the odious laws of debt, the poverty of the people, 
and the cruelty of creditors, nearly produced desperation. 
Touched with compassion, Manlius, the savior of the Capitol, 
a man of generous nature, stood forward as the protector of 
the unfortunate, and even sold a patrimonial estate to relieve 
their wants. He was charged with defaming the govern- 
ment, and thrown into prison. He was afterwards released, 
and whether he then meditated plans of vengeance is uncer- 
tain ; but he finally fell a victim to the envy and tyrannical 
spirit of his order, who now lorded it uncontrolled over the 
broken-spirited people. Rome was on the very point of 
sinking into utter insignificance under the dominion of the 
short-sighted patricians, when two men arose, who, by firm* 
ness and temperance, raised her from her dejection, and 
placed her in the road which led with certainty to her future 
grandeur. 

The Licinian Rogations. 

375 In the year of Rome 378, C. Licinius Stolo and L. Sextius 
(vere chosen tribunes of the people, and they immediately 
brought forward their celebrated rogations, which operated 
such a mighty change in Rome. The supreme magistrates 
were in that year military tribunes ; the people were full of 
hope, the senate of fear. If the rogations passed the comitia, 
it might not be safe to refuse assent to them. They sought 
to avert the danger, and gained over the colleagues of Li- 
cinius and Sextius to interpose their veto on the measure. 
Its authors were not dejected. When the year expired, they 
refused to allow the election of military tribunes to proceed. 
The republic remained for five or six years under Interreges. 
Licinius and Sextius were re-elected every year, and each 
year more and more of the friends of the rogations were 
chosen to be their colVagues. The people were firm to their 



B. I 




Marshal Junot. 



CHAP. VI. ROME TILL THE PUNIC WARS, 107 

popular tribunes. The clients haxJ, in the time of the decem- 
virs, been admitted into the tribes; the influence of the pa- 
tricians was thereby diminished ; the office of the interrex 
being- but for five days, no v^rars could be carried on : tlie 
tribunes allowed no one to be imprisoned for debt. Though 
the neighboring states remained at peace, yet such a condition 
of affairs was unsafe. All parties wished to see an end of 
it, yet the senate would not yield. Twice was the venerable 
Camillus created dictator against the people, twice did the 
dictatorial power fail before the tribunarian. Arts, menaces, 
force, were tried in vain. The senate would willingly have 
conceded some of the demands. The tribunes incorporated 
all into one bill, and would have all or none. Camillus, at 
length, became convinced of the inutility of protracted re- 
sistance. He mediated between the orders, and the senate 
gave their consent to the rogations. 

These rogations were, 1. that no more military tribunes 
should be chosen, but consuls only, and of these one to be a 
plebeian ; 2. that one half of the guardians of the Sibylline 
books should be plebeians ; 3. that in cases of debt, all the 
interest already paid should be deducted from the capital, and 
the residue paid in three equal annual instalments; 4. an 
Agrarian law : of which the principal provisions were, tnat 
the public land should have its boundaries marked out ; that 
every Roman citizen should be entitled to enjoy it ; that no 
one should hold more than 500 jugera of it in arable or 
plantation land, or feed more than 100 head of black, or 500 
of small cattle, on the public pasture ; that a tenth of the 
produce of corn-land, a fifth of that of vineyards and planta- 
tions, and so much a head grazing-money for cattle should be 
paid to the state ; that this tax should be farmed out every 
lustrum by the censors, and the produce of it appropriated to 
the payment of the army ; that the possessors of the public 
land should be bound to employ free laborers on their land 
in a rated proportion to their possession. 

The plebeians consented that the consular power should be 
diminished. The jurisdiction was separated from it, and com- 
mitted to a prsetor, whom the patricians insisted should of 
right belong' to their body; and as the praetor ranked with 
the consuls, and might be styled their colleague, they thuis 
kept two out of three places to themselves. The first plebeian 
consul was L. Sextius Lateranus, the fellow-tribune of C 
Liciiiius Stole. 



108 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

Samnite War. 

The period from 389 to 411 was internally spent m efforts, 
on the side of the patricians, to do away with the Licinian 
law ; externally in various wars with the Gauis, Etruscans, 
Hernicians, and otliers; and victory was, as usual, on the 
side of the Romans. 

The Samnites, a mountain race, descended, it is said, from 
the Sabines, certainly akin to them, had been for some time 
spreading themselves to the south. They had long since 
made themselves masters of Capua, the wealthy capital of 
Campania, where they rapidly degenerated, and sank into 
luxury. Their mountain brethren became their bitterest 
enemies. In the year 412, the Campanians, being hard 
pressed by the Samnites, called upon Rome for alliance and 
aid. Aid was not refused ; the Romans sent an embassy to 
the Samnites, requesting them to abstain from injuring the 
allies of Rome. Their interference was haughtily rejected ; 
a combined Roman and Latin army entered Campania. Mount 
Gaurus, which overhangs the Lucrine lake, was the scene of 
the first conflict between these two great nations, who fought for 
the empire of Italy. After a furious conflict, victory declared 
for Rome. The war was obstinately continued, though to the 
advantage of the latter. At last Rome, jealous of Latium, 
made a peace with the Samnites, in which the Latins refused 
to join. 

The Latin War. 

The Latins had long been in close alliance with Rome. In 
all wars they composed one half of the legions ; they were 
mingled in the manipuli, or companies, and their general 
commanded alternately with the Roman. Feeling their 
power, they deemed it just that they should be placed on a 
footing of perfect equality; their ambassadors repaired to 
Rome, and proposed to the senate that the two nations should 
form one, in which Rome should have tlie supremacy, and 
which should be denominated from her; that half the senate 
should be composed of Tjatins, and one of the consuls be of 
that nation. These just propositions were rejected with 
scorn and indignation by the haughty Romans, and war, little 
less than civil, broke out between the long-united nations. 

The Latins and Campanians were still" at war with the 
Samnites, who were now in alliance with Rome. Four Ro- 
man legions, by a rapid march through the mountains, arrived 
in Campania, and joined the Samnite army. At the foot of 
\esuvius, the decisive conflict took place: Samnites were 



CHAP. VI. ROME TILL THE PUNIC WARS. 109 

arrayed against Campanians, Romans against Latins, similar 
arms and tactics against each other. Victory long being 
doubtful, the front ranks in the left wing of the Romans fell 
back. The plebeian consul Decius, who had vowed to sacri- 
fice himself for Rome, now performed his vow : consecrated 
by the pontifex, and clad in a magnificent robe, he rushed 
on horseback amidst the ranks of the enemy, and fell covered 
with wounds. The Latins gave way before the renewed 
valor of the Romans ; and the other consul, Manlius, was 
equally successful on his side. Scarcely a fourth of the 
liatin army escaped. 

The loss of the flower of her troops effectually debilitated 
Latium: town after town submitted to the Romans, and a 
bloody and cruel vengeance was taken by that haughty people. 
The people of Latium were divided ; some obtained the rank 
of Roman citizens, others were deprived of their lands and 
their rights. They were forbidden to hold national diets, or 
to intermarry or acquire lands in each other's territories; 
they no longer served in the Roman legions. With the 
Volscians and Hernicians they formed separate cohorts. 

About this time, Q. Publilius Philo, being dictator, had 
three laws passed which completed the constitution. One of 
these included the censorship in the higher offices, which 
were common to the two orders; a second took from the 
curiae the power of putting their veto on any law ; the third 
made the plebiscita, or decrees of the tribes, binding on 
all citizens. By these means, internal discord was ended, 
and Rome, unretarded by domestic dissensions, could now ad- 
vance rapidly in the career of universal empire. 

War with Pyrrhus. 

Rome was now mistress of Etruria, Latium, and Campania, 
The Samnites had aided her to conquer the Latins ; a gene- 
ral league of the Samnites and their kindred mountain tribes 
was formed against the menacing power of Rome, and a 
fierce war broke out, in which a Roman army endured the 
disgrace of passing under the yoke at the Caudine pass; but 
the disgrace was speedily effaced, and Samnium reduced to 
submission. 

Tarentum, a rich and luxurious city of Southern Italy, b. a 
had taken part in this war, and grievously insulted the Ro- 283 
mans. Unable to defend themselves, the Tarentines sought 
the aid of Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, a prince of courage and 
talent, ready to ser*^e whoever could pay. He had just 
gained and lost Macedonia ; and he now fed himself with the 
hopes of becoming the Alexander of the West ; reckoned on 
10 



110 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

a speedy conquest of Italy; and already, in his ambitious 
views, anticipated that of Gaul, Spain, and Africa. He there- 
fore willingly acceded to the desire of the Tarentines, and 
passed over to Italy. 

For the first time the arms and tactics of Greece and Rome 
came into collision. In the first two battles, fought at Pan- 
dosia and Asculum, his military skill and his elephants gained 
the victory for Pyrrhus ; yet with so much loss, that he made 
proposals of peace to the Romans. They would treat only 
on condition of his quitting Italy. A third battle was fought 
B. o. near Beneventum, in which Pyrrhus was so roughly handled, 
279 that he gave up all hopes of conquest in Italy, and passed 
over to Sicily, and thence to Greece, where he met his death, 
in an attempt on the city of Argos, in the Peloponnesus, 
The Romans now reduced all Southern Italy ; and from the 
Arno to Rhegium, the whole peninsula obeyed the city. 



CHAP. VII. 

ROME TILL THE TIME OF THE GRACCHI. 

First Punic War. 

The island of Sicily had originally been colonized by the 
people who inhabited Italy. The Greeks early began to es- 
tablish colonies there, and many of these rapidly grew up to 
be powerful states. The Carthaginians also settled there. 
They held at this period one half of the island, and their 
power was formidable to the remainder.* 

Syracuse was the' chief of the Grecian colonies. Its 
founders were Dorians ; its constitution was therefore at first 
aristocratic ; but it was a trading city, and did not long con- 
tinue to be so governed. The beneficent Gelo, at the time 
when Greece was assailed by Persia, possessed the supreme 

406. power in Syracuse. Six years after the fatal expedition of the 
Athenians against it, Syracuse fell under the dominion of 
Dionysius, an able, talented, and, if we credit a modern his- 
torian, a useful prince. He left his power to his son, of the 

867 same name, who inherited not his good qualities. His cousin 
Dion, and then the Corinthian Timoleon, overthrew his 
power. The Syracusans had not virtue enough to retain their 
recovered freedom, Agathocles, a man of splendid talents, 
seized the supreme power. He was the terror of his foeu, 
and formidable even to the Carthaginians. Close pressed in 

See Carthage, p. 59. 




Ill 



CHAP VII. ROME TILL THE TIME OF THE GRACCHL 113 

war by them, he adopted the bold resolution of carrying the 
war into their own country. He passed over to Africa, and 
appeared before the walls of Carthage. He died in a good b c 
old age, full of fame, but childless. 289. 

On his death Syracuse fell into confusion. Pyrrhus was 
invited over from Italy to no purpose. The Mamertines, a 
portion of the mercenary troops whom Agathocles had had 
in pay, seized on the city of Messina, and murdered the in- 
habitants : the Syracusans allied themselves with the Car- 
thaginians against them ; the Mamertines applied for support 
to the Romans. After some delay, occasioned by the flagrant 
injustice of the Mamertine cause, interest prevailed over 
principle, and the required aid was promised. Thus began 
the first of those wars called Punic. 

Rome was mistress of all Italy, except what was held in 265. 
the north by the Gauls : Carthage was in the height of her 
power, possessed of a large portion of Africa, Spain, and 
Sicily, and of Sardinia, and other islands. Rome's civil con- 
stitution was in its vigor; that of Carthage in its decline: 
Rome's troops were free-born citizens ; those of Carthage 
mercenaries : Rome had no fleet ; that of Carthage was nu- 
merous. Such was the relative state of the two nations when 
they descended into the arena. 

The Romans determined to have a fleet. A Carthaginian 
ship of war, that was driven on shore, served as a model : the 
crews were taught to row on land. Inferior to their foes in 
the art of manoeuvring their vessels, they invented machines 
for grappling, and bringing a sea to resemble a land-fight 
The consul Duillius won the first naval victory. The Romans 
were already victorious in Sicily, The consul Regulus, in 
imitation of x^gathocles, carried the war into Africa, and 
spread terror to the gates of Carthage. A Spartan merce- 
nary, named Xanthippus, was opposed to him. Roman courage 
failed before Grecian skill, and Regulus and his army surren- 
dered. National hatred invented a lying tale of Punic cru- 
elty and Roman virtue, in the person of this unhappy general. 
A signal defeat, off" the JEgatian islands, forced the Cartha- 
ginians to sue for peace, and a war of twenty-three years ter- 
m inated by their giving up all Sicily, and paying a large sum 243. 
ol money. 

lllyrian War — Gallic War, 

The Ulyrians, a people inhabiting the north-eastern coast 
of the Adriatic, were addicted to piracy. The Italian mer- 
chants complained of their losses at Rome : ambassa^dors were 
sent to Illyria to remonstrate : the ambassadors were ill 



114 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART 1. 

treated, and some of them murdered. Rome took up arms to 
avenge them, and to put down piracy. The Illyrian queen, 
Teuta, was compelled to surrender a large portion of her do- 
minions, to reduce her shipping, and to pay an annual tribute. 
The Senonian Gauls possessed the rich plains watered by 
the Po ; the Ligurians, the rugged hills west and south of 
them. Rome engaged in war with both : the former were 
completely subdued, after a hard contest, in which they were 
B. c. aided by their kindred tribes from beyond the Alps. The 
224. battle of Clusium decided the fate of Cisalpine Gaul. De- 
fended by their mountains, the Ligurians, often overcome, 
were long unconquered. They were a hardy, active race, 
who lived by feeding cattle, and by hiring out their services 
in war. 

Second Punic War. 

The Carthaginians now turned their views to conquests in 
Spain. Their troops were commanded by Asdrubal, one of 
the ablest generals they had ever possessed. On his death 
the troops chose for their commander his son Annibal, now 
but twenty-six years old, who had been reared in the camp, 
and was the sworn foe of Rome. All his thoughts were 
il9 turned on war against that republic : he attacked Saguntum, 
a city in alliance with Rome, took it, after an obstinate but 
unavailing defence, marched with a numerous, veteran, and 
well-appointed army through the Pyrenees and Gaul to the 
confluence of the Rhone and Saone, passed through the coun- 
try of the Allobroges, crossed the Alps, and descended into 
the modern Piedmont. He defeated the Romans on the banks 
of the Ticinus, then on those of the Trebia, next at the Tra- 
simene lake in Tuscany, and finally gave them an overthrow 
at CannsB in Apulia, worthy to be compared with those of 
Syracuse, Leuctra, and Arbela. But here his career of vic- 
tory ended. The Roman armies hitherto opposed to him had 
' been militia, their generals rash and inexperienced. The 
chief command was now given to Fabius the Delayer, who 
would never come to a general engagement, but hovered 
about and harassed the Punic army, and raised the courage 
of his own. Yet Annibal, though opposed by a faction at 
home, and ill-supplied with men and money, kept possession 
of the fairest portion of Italy during seventeen years. 

Rome gradually recovered her strength; her courage had 
never failed : she sent an army to Spain, which was at first 
resisted with success ; but under the command of the youth- 
ful, virtuous, and heroic Scipio, overcame the troops of Car- 
tilage, Annibal was repeatedly checked in Italy ; Gracchus 



CHAP VII. ROME TILL THE TIME OF THE GRACCHI. 115 

conquered Sardinia ; Syracuse, which had now gone against 
Rome, was, though defended by the machines of tlie great 
Archimedes, taken by Mircellus ; and Annibal's last hope, — 
the army led to his assistance from Spain by his brother As- 
drubal, — was annihilated on the banks of the Metaurus by 
Tiberius Nero. Scipio at length passed with his victorious 
army over to Africa, and Annibal was recalled to the defence 
of his country. On the plains of Zama a battle was fought b. c 
between the two greatest generals of the age, and the fate 203 
of Carthage was decided. Annibal was defeated for the first 
time ; Carthage was forced to sue for peace. Rigorous terms 
were imposed ; she was confined to Africa, obliged to surren- 
der her ships, prohibited engaging in war, and compelled to 
yield Numidia to Masinissa, the ally of Rome. 

The Macedonian and Syrian Wars. 

Rome now possessed all Italy, Sicily, and the other islands, 
and a part of Spain. Her arms now, for the first time, show 
themselves in Greece. Carthage being reduced, Philip, king 
of Macedon, was the prince who could give Rome most dis- 
turbance. Philip, though he had made an alliance with An- 
nibal, imprudently neglected to assist him; he wasted his 
strength in petty conflicts in Greece, and, instead of uniting 
the people of that country, unwisely put them in fear for their 
independence. The JGtolians called on the Romans for aid, 
who came forward as the champions of Grecian liberty. The 198. 
battle of Cynocephale overthrew the power of Macedon. 
Philip had to sue for peace, and Rome proclaimed liberty to 
Greece— a nominal, deceptive liberty, like the independence 
she had left to Carthage : she would fain be mistress of the 
world, without the world discerning its subjection. 

•Thoas, the iEtolian, thought himself not sufficiently re- 
warded for his services by the Romans. He betook himself 
to Antiochus the Great, king of Syria ; represented to him 
the danger to be apprehended from suffering the Romans thus 
to go on extending their power, a power the more to be sus- 
pected, as they were the known foes of kings ; and exhorted 
the monarch to lose no time in opposing ^eir farther pro- 
gress. His representations were enforced by Annibal, who, 
driven by a faction favorable to Rome from his own country, 
where he was endeavoring by salutary reforms and wise regu- 
lations to restore Carthage to a condition of resuming her 
former rank, was now at the court of Antiochus. Their sug- 
gestions were listened to with a willing ear ; war was de- 
clared : Asia arrayed against Rome ; but fortunately ff«r ti»e 



116 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART 1 

latter, the counsels of Annibal, respecting the mode of con- 
ducting the war, were not attended to. 

Antiochus was by far the most powerful monarch of Asia 
his sway was acknowledged from the Troas to Caucasus, 
Media, Syria, Phoenicia, Palestine, obeyed him. With an 
army estimated at 400,000 men he entered Greece. Asiatic 
luxury attended this second Xerxes: pomp and splendor 
shone in his purple and silken tents ; but he, too, had to en 
counter an iron race, who fought, not indeed for liberty, bu 
B. c. for empire. A defeat at Thermopylse drove him from Greece 
li)l The Romans pursued him into Asia. Another decisive vic- 
tory at Magnesia reduced the Syrian monarch to seek a peace, 
the conditions of which were the surrender of all Lesser Asia, 
as far as Mount Taurus, and of the half of his ships. 

Conquest of Macedon. 

Philip had put to death the better of his two sons : learn- 
ing when too late his innocence, he died of grief. His suc- 
cessor, Perseus, vainly hoped to restore Macedon to its pris- 
tine strength and dignity, and he wanted to engage its forces 
once more in conflict with those of Rome. But Paulus JEmi- 
lius, the Roman general, overcame all obstacles presented by 
the nature of the country. The battle of Pydna, in which 
20,000 Macedonians fell, was decisive. Perseus was seized 
with a panic ; he fled from his kingdom, and sheltered him- 
self in Samothrace, where he meanly surrendered himself to 
his enemies. In the 156th year after the death of Alexander 

169. the Great, the last king of his paternal kingdom walked in 
the triumphal procession of the general of a nation which 
had not, at that time, attracted the attention of Greece. Per- 
seus died in prison. Macedonia was declared free, under the 
• protection of Rome. Fifteen years afterwards, a commotion 
was raised in that state by one Andriscus, who called himself 
the son of Perseus. The Romans were obliged to send an 
army thither, and the kingdom was reduced to a Roman 
province. 

In these times Rome began to interest herself in the af- 
fairs of Egypt. Egyptian ambassadors appeared in the senate- 

167. house, imploring the interference of Rome to prevent An- 
tiochus, king of Syria, from making a conquest of that coun- 
try. Ambassadors were dispatched thither by the senate, and 
dt their mandate Antiochus withdrew. 

Third Punic War. 

The period fixed by Providence to the duration of Carthage 
now approached. Civil dissensions, the sure forerunners of 




Charles I. of Enc^land. 



117 



f^AP. VII. ROME TILL THE TIME OF THE GRACCHI. 119 

national ruin, ran high. Forty senators, driven from the city, 
besought Masinissa, of Nurnidia, to effect their restoration. 
His mediation was spurned by the dominant faction. The 
affair was brought before the Roman senate, who decided ac- 
cording to the wishes of Masinissa, and the pretext wag 
gladly laid hold on for destroying their once formidable rival. 
The Carthaginians were ordered to surrender all the ships 
they had built: they obeyed, and saw them burned before 
their faces. They were then ordered to quit Carthage, and to 
build for themselves a new city in the interior, afar from the 
sea. This ruthless command to leave their temples and the 
tombs of their fathers, and the scene of all their ancient 
glory, was too much ; the people were driven to desperation ; 
tiie senate swore to stand or fall with Carthage ; and war, 
now inevitable, was prepared for. Every exertion was made 
to replace the lost navy ; all the timber that could be collected 
was brought to the dock-yards ; all metals, noble and ignoble, 
holy or profane, were melted down for the making of arms ; 
even the women cut off their long hair, that it might be 
twisted into bow-strings for the defenders of their country, 
and into cordage for the ships; all ages, ranks, and sexes 
took share in the common danger. Three years long did the 
ill-fated city hold out with amazing perseverance against all 
the efforts of the Romans. More than once were the legions 
defeated ; two walls were taken, the besieged defended the 
third ; the harbor was lost, they dug a new one. At length, 
the younger Scipio was appointed to the command of the be- 
sieging army, and his genius triumphed over the ingenious 
devices of the besieged. By stratagem he gained the new 
harbor; yet the city, though now open and defenceless, main- 
tained, for six days and nights, an obstinate resistance. A 
party at length declared for the Romans ; the city was set on 
lire by its own citizens, as it would appear, that it might not 
become a provincial town to Rome. The inhabitants slew 
themselves on the tombs of their fathers, in the citadel and in g. a 
the temples of their gods : the city burned seventeen days ; 147. 
and the heretofore mistress of the sea, the town which had 
numbered 700,000 inhabitants, which had flourished for nearly 
1000 years, sank, never again to rise with independence. 

Achcean War. 

Greece, though nominally free, very soon saw that she haa 
made an ill exchange, in getting the Roman instead of the 
Macedonian power into her neighborhood. When Macedon 
had b*'?^ reduced to a Roman province, the Romans sought 
jf"// y to make themselves masters of the strong places 



120 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

throughout Greece. They called on the Achsean league to 
surrender such places as the Macedonian kini,^s had held in 
the Peloponnesus. Their embassy was insulted and abused 
by the populace in Corinth, and a pretext for a war was gladly 
laid hold on. 

Greece fought with her ancient heroism, but in vain ; her 
star had set, her troops could not resist the legions led by 
able and experienced commanders. Critolaus, the Achoean 
general, was defeated at Thermopylee, and slew himself. 
Diseus, like another Leonidas, vainly attempted to defend, 
with 614 brave men, the isthmus of Corinth. He hastened 
to his own country, satisfied that resistance was vain ; col- 
lected his wife and children ; distributed poison among them ; 
and he and they perished, not to behold the slavery of their 
B. c, country. Corinth was taken by L. Mummius, in the same 
147. year that Carthage fell before Scipio. Its pictures, statues, 
plate, and treasures, were shipped for Rome ; all the grown 
men were put to death, the women and children sold for 
slaves, and the city itself burned. A similar fate befell Thebes 
and Chalcis in Eubcpa. Greece became, under the name of 
Achsea, a Roman province; her glory departed; and for 
nearly 2000 years she has been a stranger to independence. 

The Spanish Wars. 

Spain was originally inhabited by nations of Keltic and of 
Iberian race. Its people were distinguished by valor, talent, 
steadiness, and perseverance : it had been, from the most 
remote ages, resorted to by the Phoenicians for the produce 
of its mines and its soil; the Greeks early visited it; the 
Carthaginians made themselves masters of a considerable 
portion of it. During the second Punic war, all their pos- 
sessions ui Spain fell to the victorious Romans. 

After the conquest of Carthage and Corinth, the Romans 
began to turn their view to Spain. They attacked the Lusi- 
tanians ; but this valiant people, headed by Viriatus, a man 
of distinguished bravery, prudence, and virtue, long bid de- 
fiance to the arms of the Romans, who now were so far degen- 
erated from their pristine virtue, as not to blush at employing 
treachery to accomplish their objects, and Viriatus perished 
by assassins hired by Rome. The town of Numantia, with a 
garrison of but 4000 men, long withstood some of Rome's 
ablest generals, and often compelled the legions to withdraw. 
Even the great Scipio, the conqueror of Carthage, could 
hardly boast of having taken this heroic town. Famine 
preyed on the inhabitants; the Roman general would give 
no opportunity for battle ; in despair they set fire to the town. 



CHAP. VIII. ROME TILL THE END OF THE REPUBLIC. 121 

and threw themselves into the flames. The Romans stormed 
the walls, and found all desolate and silent. 

In several parts of Spain, various tribes maintained their 
mdependence for another century. They fought long and 
obstinately ; but they had no confederacies. Each tribe fought 
and fell alone ; and gradually the whole country fell under 
the dominion of Rome, now grown thoroughly corrupt and 
tyrannical. 



CHAP. VIII. 

ROMK TILL THE END OF THE REPUBLIC. 

The Gracchi. 

Rome had conquered Greece. The last will of Attalus, 
king of Pergamus, gave her Lesser Asia. The gift was de- 
structive. Grecian and Asiatic corruption and vice proved 
too strong for Roman virtue. We are no more to look for 
the noble qualities that adorned the golden ages of the repub- 
lic. Wealth and power are henceforth the claims to the high 
offices of the state ; corruption and extortion the characteris- 
tics of magistrates and governors. Blood, which for centuries 
had not stained the streets of Rome, was now shed without 
remorse. Even his virtues could not save the conqueror of 
Carthage, the elegant and accomplished friend of Lselius and 
patron of Terence and Polybius, from the hands of his own 
relations, who dreaded his being elevated to the dictatorship ; 
and the friends of justice feared to institute an inquiry into 
the causes of his death. Now it became usual at Rome to 
carry a dagger beneath the robe. 

In the early days of the republic, when the Roman people 
were divided into the two separate orders of patricians and 
plebeians, nothing could be more just than the Agrarian laws, 
such as we have described them above.* It was but reasona- 
ble that the plebeians should share in the lands purchased 
with their blood ; it was but just that all orders should con- 
tJ*ibute to the public revenue. But, in the present period, the 
distinction between patrician and plebeian could hardly be 
said to exist ; and if there was a difference, it was, that the 
great preponderance of landed property was on the side of 
the latter. This property had been possessed undisturbed for 



II 



* See p. 66. 



122 HISTOKY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

generations ; it had often been acquired by purchase, by in- 
heritance, or by marriage. Yet, though their estates might 
have been legally acquired, the unfeeling rapacity of the no- 
bles, in cruelly expelling the old tenants, whose fathers had 
for generations dwelt on their lands, to throw their little farms 
into pasture-land, was such as must have excited indignation 
in any generous bosom. . The Romans were now, like a 
modern nation, divided into rich and poor, without the latter 
having the resource which the poor of modern times have, 
of following a trade or going to service. Trade was esteemed 
beneath a free-born citizen ; slaves precluded the necessity of 
hired labor. No remedy remained but a violent and unjust 
one. 

.B. c. When the treasures of Attains came to the Romans, Tib. 

132 Sempronius Gracchus, nephew to Scipio, one of the tribunes 
of the people, proposed that they should be divided among the 
people. This was unjust ; for, since the conquest of Macedon, 
the Roman people had been tax-free; and the wealth now 
brought into the treasury was merely sufficient to enable the 
government to be carried on without oppressing the provinces. 
Gracchus farther brought in a law to prevent any citizen 
whatever from holding more than a certain quantity of land. 
Gracchus was a man of many noble qualities, but, looking 
to the end, he was not sufficiently regardful of means. He 
ejected by force, from the tribuneship, one of his colleagues, 
who was, in his eyes, too moderate. He then proceeded to 
require, that civic rights should be communicated to all Ital- 
ians. The senate and nobles thus saw themselves at once 
menaced with spoliation of their property, and loss of all influ- 
ence, by the admission to the legislature of such a multitude, 
who might be swayed to the most ruinous resolutions. They 
resolved to resist ; Scipio Nasica, a man of the purest virtue, 
placed himself on the steps ascending to the Capitol, and 
called on every one who valued his country to come to him. 
The senate, all the principal citizens, the knights, and a con- 
siderable portion of the people, ranged themselves on his side. 
A tumult arose, in which Tib. Gracchus lost his life, and blood 
was shed in civil contention for the first time since the enact- 
ment of the Twelve Tables. 
2a Ten years after the death of Tib. Gracchus, his brother 
Caius, a man of genius and eloquence superior to his, renewed 
his plans. He proposed, that, in conformity with the Li- 
cinian law,* no citizen should hold more than five hundred 

• See p. 72. It is almost needless to observe, that the Licinian law related 
«uly to possession in the public land. It set no limit to the acxjuisition oi 
landed or any other species of property. 




123 



CHAP. VIll. ROME TILL THE END OF THE RE-PUBLFC. 125 

juo-era of land ; that all Cisalpine Gaul should be reckoned 
part of Italy, and have the same rights ; that corn should be 
sold to the people at an extremely low price ; that six hundred 
knights should be admitted into the senate; that the right of 
sitting as judges should be taken from the latter and trans- 
ferred to the knights. It is difficult to conceive how^ the 
plain consequences of such measures could have escaped the 
penetration of a man of the genius of C. Gracchus. His views 
may have been personal ; he may have been led away by pas- 
sion ; possibly he was only attempting a desperate remedy 
for an evil that was inevitable — the corruption and debase- 
ment of the Roman people. 

His plans seemed calculated to engage the knights, the 
people, and all Italy, in his favor ; yet he met with little sup- 
port. The consul, Opimius, his personal enemy, set a price 
on his head; the knights, and even Latium, and the allied 
towns, declared for maintaining the constitution. Cams 
Gracchus also lost his life, and his fate was shared by three 
thousand of his adherents. 

Jugurthine War — Cimbric War. 

Micipsa, son of Masinissa, king of Numidia, when dying, 
left his kingdom to his sons, Hiempsal and Adherbal, and to 
his nephew, Jugurtha. The latter murdered his cousins, and 
seized on the whole kingdom. War was declared against 
him by the Romans. At Rome, whither he had come, during 
the lifetime of Adherbal, on the summons of the senate, he 
bribed to a great extent; and having become convinced that 
every one there had his price, the conduct of the first gene- 
rals sent agamst him confirmed him in his belief. But, at last, 
the command was conferred on Metullus, a man of noble birth. 
The arts of Jugurtha failed against him ; he had reduced the 
Numidian to the last extremity, when party-spirit at home 
transferred the consulate, and the glory of terminating the 
war, to his lieutenant Marius, a man of mean extraction, son 
of a peasant of Arpinum. Jugurtha was led in triumph, and 
then starved to deatJi in prison. 

Now began those irruptions of the northern nations, which b. c 
were destined, at length, to overturn the empire of Rome. 106 
The Romans had already made themselves masters of the 
principal passes of the Alps; a Roman province extended 
from the foot of the Alps to that of the Pyrenees ; the Allo- 
broges and the Arverni, nations inhabiting the present Savoy, 
Dauphine, and Auvergne, had been reduced. While the arms 
of Rome were employed against Numidia, northern tribes, 
named Cimbri, Teutones, Ambrones, and Tigurini, laid waste 
11* 



126 HISTOKY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

the banks of the Danube, and Gaul. They were encountered 
by the Roman legions under the consul Carbo. The Roman 
arms met a defeat. Armies commanded by Silanus, Scaurus, 
and Cassius, shared a similar fate. Caepio and Manlius were 
overthrown with prodigious slaughter ; and Italy trembled as 
in the days of Annibal. 

Rome's only hope lay in Marius : he was chosen consul 

He marched in person against the Teutones who were in 

Gaul ; his colleague, Catulus, went against the Cimbri, whc 

B- c. were entering Italy by the Rhsetian Alps. Marius encoun 

103. tered and defeated the Teutones with tremendous slaughtei 

at Aqu8B SextisB (Aix), and then marched to the assistance 

of his colleague. At Vercellse, on the Athesis, the combined 

Roman armies engaged the wild hordes of the Cimbri. Th# 

conflict was long and bloody. Victory declared for Rome. 

140,000 Cimbri lay on the plain, numerous prisoners wer* 

102. taken and sold for slaves, and the consuls entered Rome !•« 

triumph. 

State of Rome — Social or Marsian War. 

The demagogues were now dominant at Rome, They had 
made Marius consul in opposition to the noble Metellus. 
Marius allied himself closely with the tribune Saturnius, 
who had murdered his competitor on the day of election 
Metellus, fearing for his life, quitted Rome. The hopes of 
the nobles were in Memmius : a tribune of the people mur- 
dered him on the day of consular election. Marius, however, 
took the side of justice, and the tribune was torn to pieces. 
Such was the state of Rome: no man's life was safe who op- 
posed the demagogues. In the provinces matters were not 
much better. The knights, who now formed a distinct order 
in the state, were in number 3900 : since the time of C. 
Gracchus, they had exercised the judicial power. They, 
moreover, farmed the revenues of the provinces, and extorted 
and oppressed the people in the most nefarious manner, while 
no redress could be obtained, as it was to themselves, in their 
capacity of judges, that all appeals for justice lay. 

A private quarrel between Csepio and Drusus brought the 
senate and the knights into conflict. The knights warmly 
espoused the cause of the former. Drusus saw the necessity 
of endeavoring to deprive them of their power, and of re- 
storing the constitution. It was of importance to gain the 
people to his side ; he proposed the formation of new colonies, 
the division of some districts. The morals of Drusus were 
pure, his views were noble • but the senate, for whose ad- 
vantage he was laboring, diti not comprehend his object, and 



CHAP. VIII. ROME TILL THE END OF THE REPUBLK'. 127 

opposed hini. Finding senate and knights united against him, 
he saw that he must look abroad for support. He promised 
the freedom of the city to all Italy ; he brought in a law for 
the assignment of lands, another to regulate the price of 
corn, and a third to divide the judicial power between the 
senate and the knights. As he was returning home, attended 
by an immense concourse of people, he was stabbed by an 
unknown hand. 

The Italians came to Rome to claim their civic rights. 
They had been a chief mean of extending the dominion of 
the city, as their contingents had always far out-numbered 
the legions : they deemed it, therefore, but just they should 
share in its advantages. Their desire was haughtily rejected. 
Seeing they had no hopes from the justice and generosity of b. o. 
Rome, they resolved to become independent of her. An ex- 91. 
tensive confederacy was formed among the nations of Um- 
brian and Sabellian race, which was afterwards joined by the 
people of Tuscany, Campania, and Calabria. Wa,r was de- 
clared against Rome. Corfinium was made their capital. 
Large armies were sent against the confederates : the Roman 
generals were defeated. Never was a war more obstinate 
or more bloody. The greatest generals of Rome were sent 
against the enemy : victory and defeat alternated. Cruelties 
and massacres of the most barbarous character were exer- 
cised. The war, which cost the lives of 300,000 men, was 
only ended by a concession which, in the first instance, would 
have prevented it. One by one the allies were granted full 
civic rights, and all Italians became citizens of Rome. 

Mithridatic and Civil Wars. 

Mithridates VII., king of Pontus,* the ablest and most 
powerful enemy Rome ever encountered, now appears as her 
opponent. This monarch was respected and admired for his 
great gifts of mind, and he had an army habituated, in its 
conflicts with the nations round the Euxine, to privation and 
danger. 

Just as the Romans were terminating the Social War, in- 
telligence arrived of the massacre, in one day, of 80,000 
Roman citizens, resident in the towns of Lesser Asia. The 
Roman army in that country was unable to stand before the 
troops of Mithridates ; its generals were taken and put to 
death with insult. The isles of the ^gean and Greece it- 
Helf were reduced by the Pontic monarch. 

L. Sulla, a member of a reduced patrician family, had been 

* See p. 54. 



88L 



128 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

the lieutenant, and was now the rival, of Marius. He was 
besieging the city of Nola, one of those of the allies, when 
he was appointed to conduct the war against Mithridates. 
Marius, though now seventy years old, could not endure that 
his rival should have this honor. He had the decree recalled, 
and himself appointed. Sulla, on receiving this intelligence, 
broke up from before Nola, and, for the first time, a Romai, 
army marched against the city. At the head of 26,000 men 
he entered Rome, which he had called for torches to set fire 
to. Marius was forced to fly ; ho, his son, and ten of his 
adherents were, by orders of Sulla, declared public enemies. 
Marius concealed himself in the Minturnian marsh, but was 
taken and thrown into prison at Minturnum. A Cimbrian 
slave was sent to put him to death ; but, terrified at the look 
and the voice of the conqueror of his countrymen, he cast 
down his weapon and fled. Marius escaped to Africa. 

Sulla hastened over to Greece, all of which submitted to 
him. Athens alone shut her gates, and was gallantly de- 
fended by Archelaus, Mithridates's general : he, however, 
soon retreated to Boeotia, and an engagement took place near 
Chaeronea, in which the Pontic troops were totally defeated. 
Another battle followed at Orchomenus, in Thessaly, equally 
fatal to the interests of Mithridates, who now sued for peace , 
and Sulla, who, in consequence of tidings from Italy, was in 
haste to return thither, readily consented, promising to secure 
Mithridates in his paternal dominions, and have him entitled 
a friend and ally of Rome, that monarch agreeing to surren- 
der Bithynia, Cappadocia, and Asia. 

Sulla had left the consulate in the hands of Octavius and 
Cinna. The latter introduced confusion anew into the city: 
he was expelled by his colleague : he collected an army, and 
menaced the senate. Eight new tribes had been formed out 
of the citizens of such towns as had abandoned the Marsian 
league, and Cinna, by promising to distribute them into the 
old tribes, so that these should have no pre-eminence, soon 
saw himself at the head of a numerous army. To strengthen 
himself still more, he recalled Marius, and various motives 
armed almost all Italy in favor of the veteran general. The 
army of the elder Pompeius was defeated near the gates of 
Rome. Marius, Cinna, Carbo, and Sertorius entered the city. 
The consul Octavius still defended the Vatican hill ; but his 
head was soon seen borne on a spear through the streets. 
Marius then issued his orders for the slaughter of the prin- 
cipal senators : some were slain in their own houses, some 
betrayed by their clients. The high-priest of Jupiter was 
«ilaughte»'ed at the altar of his god. Catulus, the colleague 




liord CliTe. 



129 



CHAP VIII. ROME TILL THE END OP THE REPUBLIC. 131 

of Marius in the Cimbric war, was compelled to be his own 
destroyer. The head of Antonius, the great orator, was 
broug-ht to Marius as he sat at supper : he took and handled 
it, and embraced with joy the murderer. Having thus, with 
tio-er-ferocity, glutted his vengeance and made himself with 
Cinna consul for the seventh time, he expired in the 70th b. o 
year of his age, fortunate in thus escaping the vengeance of 87 
his rival. 

Sulla, having ended the Mithridatic war, was now return- 
ing home in triumph. He landed in Apulia, and marched 
his troops with good order and discipline towards Rome. He 
was met by the flying consulars, and professed his intention 
to restore the senate to their legal rights. Cinna led an 
army against him, but was slain in an uproar by his own sol- 
diers. Sulla overthrew the army of Norbanus, near Capua : 
the army of L. Scipio went over to him. Cneius Pompeius 
joined him with his father's clients. One of his officers gained 
possession of Sardinia. The Marian prsetor of Africa was in 
an insurrection burnt in his own house. Meanwhile, at t-he 
desire of the younger Marius, the prsetor Damasippus assem- 
bled the senate of Rome to make proposals of peace. All the 
citizens of rank then in Rome met in the Hostilian curia. 
The Marians fell upon and slaughtered the whole assembly ; 
no age, or station, or place, was sacred : the chief pontiff 
Scaevola fell in presence of the holy fire of Vesta. 

Sulla entered Rome : his entrance was the signal for the 
elaughter of all the Marian party, of all whom he himself or 
any of his partisans hated. That the slaughter might pro- 
ceed regularly, proscription-tables were now introduced into 
Rome : these presented to view the names of at first 80, then 
500 men of rank, whose murder was enjoined, and whose 
murderers were to be rewarded by the possession of their es- 
tates, while their children were to lose all claims to public 
office. Wealth soon became crime, where murder was gain. 
Blood had flowed in the days of Marius ; it now streamed. 
Eight thousand of the Marian party had surrendered: by 
order of Sulla, they were massacred near the senate-house. 
The cries of the victims were so loud, that the senate could 
not go on with their deliberations. " They are only," said 
Sulla, " some wretches who are punished for their crimes." 

Young Marius defended Praeneste with a heroism worthy 
of his father. His brother, the praetor, was put to death with 
wanton barbarity, and his head flung over the walls into Prse- 
neste. Marms and a friend voluntarily slew each other: the 
town was taken, and its defenders put to the sword. Cneius 
Pompeius defeated the consul Carbo in Sicily. Norbanus was 



132 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I 

driven to suicide in Rhodes. The sole authority of Sulla waa 
undisputed, save in Spain : he exercised it with ruthless 
atrocity. One of his most zealous adherents, the praetor 
Ofella, who had taken Prgeneste, venturing to stand for the 
consulship without the permission of Sulla, was slain in the 
forum by his command. When the people testified marks of 
indignation, he stepped forward and merely said, " I ordered 
it." "The proscription still raged ; wives shut the doors agains 
their own husbands ; children slew their own fathers : death 
was the only refuge from cruelty. 

The war between Marius and Sulla cost the lives of 33 
consulars, 7 prsetors, 60 sediles, 200 senators, and 150,000 
Roman citizens, and thousands were stript of their paternal 
possessions, and driven forth to wander in misery. Sulla di- 
vided among his legions the lands and properties of the Ma- 
rians : he renewed and made perpetual in his own person the 
dictatorship, now out of use 120 years ; sought to bring back 
the republic to its old form, when all power lay with the pa- 
tricians ; deprived the tribunes of the people of the right of 
proposing laws, completed the reduced senate from the eques- 
trian order, increased, for the advantage of his friends, the 
colleges of pontiffs and augurs. Suddenly, in the very pleni- 
tude of his power, he abdicated it, and retired into private 
B. (^ life. He resigned himself undisturbed to mental and sensual 
75. enjoyments, employing his leisure in writing the history of 
his own life. He died just as he had completed the 22d book. 
His resignation of power is an act almost unexampled : it 
gives a strong idea of the man and the times, thus to behold 
him, who had made blood run like water, passing his latter 
days in tranquillity at Puteoli. 

From the Death of Sulla to that of Mithridates. 

Sertorius, one of the Marian party, had retired to Spain : 
he put himself at the head of the Lusitanians, whose respect and 
affections he had gained, established among them a miniature 
of the Roman republic, and during eighteen years defeated 
every army sent against him by the Romans. Neither Me- 
tellus nor Pompeius availed to subdue him ; treachery alone 
could free Rome from this enemy. Perpenna, one of his offi- 
12. cers, conspired against him, and slew him at a banquet. 

While Sertorius maintained himself in Spain, a furiou 
war raged in the south of Italy. A few gladiators broke ou 
of their school at Capua; their leader was Spartacus, a Thra 
cian by birth ; slaves, pirates, peasants, flocked to them ; they 
soon increased to such a number as to be formidable to Rome. 
Consular arrnies were sent against them withfut success. 



CHAP. Vtll. ROME TILL THE END OF THE REPUBLIC. 133 

four Roman armies were defeated by the gladiator. At length 
Crassus was sent to oppose him ; victory was long dubious, 
but finally declared for Rome. The whole of the rebel army 
was cut to pieces or dispersed : its leader fell on heaps of 
slaughtered Romans. The "bodies of 40,000 rebels lay on the 
field. 

At this period arose in Lesser Asia a pirate-society, re- 
sembling the buccaneers of modern times. Cilicians, Isauri- 
ans, and people of other Asiatic regions, engaged in piracy 
on an extensive scale : their ships swarmed in the Mediter- 
ranean ; the coasts of Italy were infested by them. No Ro- 
man was safe at his country-seat ; no magistrate on his jour- 
ney. They ventured even to attack the Roman legions, put 
a stop to foreign commerce, and reduced Rome to danger of 
famine, by intercepting the supplies of corn. Several Ror 
man commanders were sent against them ; they were beaten, 
but not conquered. At last Cneius Pompeius was intrusted 
with the conduct of the war, and with unlimited power over 
the Mediterranean and its coasts. He swept the sea of them 
in the short space of forty days, pursued them to their re- 
treats, forced them to submit, and transported them fiir inland 
into the continent. ^^ 

During the lifetime of Sulla, a second war had broken out 
with Mithridates, and been terminated to the advantage of 
Rome. When Nicomedes of Bithynia bequeathed his king- 
dom to the Romans, Mithridates disputed their right to it, and 
entered it with a large army. The command of the Roman 
army was intrusted to Lucullus, a man long retired from 
military affairs, and devoted to the arts of peace. He is said 
to have acquired his knowledge of this war, and the mode of 
conducting it, from books and conversation on his way to Asia. 
His deeds prove that a mind used to thinking can soon mas- 
ter any difficulties. The war was a constant succession of 
victories on the side of the Romans. Mithridates was forced 
to apply to Tigranes, king of Armenia: Lucullus, in a bloody 
battle, overthrew, with hardly any loss on his own side, the 
troops of Armenia, and made himself master of Tigranocerta, 
the capital of Tigranes. He now had the full prospect of 
bringing to a glorious termination the war against one of the 
ablest enemies Rome had ever encountered, when Pompeius 
arrived to rob him of the honor. The new general carried 
on the war with vigor : he reduced Tigranes to sue for peace, 
and drove Mithridates to take refuge among the wild tribes 
north of the Euxine. The spirit of the Pontic monarch was 
not yet broken : he meditated a union of the nations dwelling 
from the Tanais to the Alps, and of invading Italy at the head 



134 HISTORY OF THE WOELD. PART 1. 

of thenx His troops were terrified at his projects;^ his son 
B o conspired against him, and Mithridates, justly styled the 
^- Great, died by poison administered by his own hand, in the 
72d year of his age. During 25, years he had carried on an 
obstinate war against Rome, had withstood the fortune of 
Sulla, the zeal of several consuls, the wisdom of Lucullus, 
and the ra^dity of Pompeius, and was finally overcome only 
by ingratitude and treason. 

Pompeius deprived Tigranes of Syria, Cilicia, and Phoeni- 
cia, which became subject to Rome. He marched southwards, 
and reduced Judsea. All Asia being now subdued, he re- 
turned to Italy, where he disbanded his troops on landing, to 
quiet the apprehensions of the people. He was honored with 
a splendid triumph, and he brought into the public treasury 
a sum of 20,000 talents. 

Catiline's Conspiracy. 

While Pompeius was absent in the East, Rome ran immi- 
nent risk of seeing days worse than those of Marius and 
Sulla, and crimes of equal or greater enormity perpetrated. 
L. Sergius Catilina, a man of patrician extraction, but of 
profligate manners and ruined fortunes, conceived hopes of 
being able to overthrow the constitution. Several men of 
high rank were concerned in this conspiracy. Catiline stood 
for the consulship, but failed, M. Tullius Cicero, the illustri- 
ous orator, being chosen. His designs being discovered, he 
became desperate, and resolved on the murder of the consul 
and the principal senators, and setting fire to the city ; but 
information of all his projects was given to the consul, and 
Catiline was at length obliged to leave Rome, and put him- 
self at the head of such forces as he had been able to bring 
together. His accomplices at Rome were meanwhile dis- 
covered and executed, and he himself engaging with the 
army sent against him, fought and fell with a heroism worthy 
63. of a better cause. 

The Gallic War of C<Bsar. 

At this period the leading men in Rome were Pompeius, 
named the Great, and flushed with his victories; Crassus, 
distinguished for his riches, and the conqueror of Spartacus : 
Caesar, a man of noble birth, distinguished talents, ruined for- 
tune, and now father-in-law of Pompeius ; Cato, of pre-emi- 
nent virtue, unstained character, and only to be blamed (i+" 
blame could attach to sucn a principle) for not being able to 
accommodate himself to the manners of the times, and of 
thus being unable to render more real service to his coun'ry 




James II. of England. 



135 



CHAP. VIII. ROME TILL THE END OF THE REPUBLIC. 137 

and, lastly, Cicero, the crusher of the projects of Catiline, 
the ablest orator, the most accomplished and virtuous states- 
man, only unhappy in a want of firmness and decision of 
character. 

The ambil ion of the three former could not be restrained 
by the virtue and moderation of the two last. Already Csesar 
and Crassus had been more than suspected of being privy to 
the plans of Catiline, trusting- that, through their superior 
character, talents, and influence, they might be able to seize 
on the supreme power, when his ruthless ferocity had re- 
moved all obstacles and all competitors. Cgesar had been 
afterwards prajtor in Spain, and had there repaired his dilapi- 
dated fortune. On his return to Rome he had been made 
consul, and while in office he caused several laws to be passed, 
which gratified and increased his influence with Pompeius, 
the knights, and the people. He took occasion to reconcile 
Pompeius, who was married to his daughter, with Crassus, 
whose wealth gave him great power with the people, and the 
three formed among themselves that coalition or secret com- 
pact of mutual support and mutual regard to each other's in- 
terest, known under the name of the Triumvirate. 

Caesar, on the expiration of his consulate, had himself ap- 
pointed for five years to the government of the Gauls. Cisal- 
pine Gaul had long been a part of Italy. The Romans had 
first entered Transalpine Gaul, B. C. 123., and shortly after 
reduced the south-eastern part of it to the form of a province, 

Gaul was divided into a number of independent states, 
some of a more, some of a less warlike character. The most 
powerful race were the Belgians, who dwelt from the Alps 
northwards to the sea, mingled with tribes of Germanic race. 
The Helvetii, a portion of these, dwelling at the foot of b. c 
Mount Jura, gave the Roman governor the wished-for oppor- 57. 
tunity of increasing his military fame and power, and of 
securing the tranquillity of Italy. United with several Ger- 
man tribes, they set fire to their dwellings, and in an im- 
mense body set forth to pass the Jura in search of more 
smiling lands. Caesar hastened to Geneva, pursued them, 
and brought them to an engagement, in which Roman tactics 
and discipline speedily triumphed over ignorant courage. He 
followed their enfeebled forces, and compelled them to sur- 
render. They were received as allies, and a colony was 
placed, for future security, at the principal pass of Jura. 

In some parts of Gaul confederacies were formed against 

the Romans, in others oppressed states called on Ctesar for 

protection : one after another the confederacies and the sta tes 

fell before his genius. During a command of ten years (lor 

12* 



138 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

b^ t)ie Influence of Pompeius, it had been prolonged) he re- 
duced the entire of Gaul, crossed the Rhine, carried the arms 
of Ronie into the gloom of the Hercynian forest, and passed 
the channel which divides from the continent the island of 
Britain, hitherto known only by name to the inhabitants of 
Italy. 

Each day filled Rome with wonder by the intelligence 
that arrived of the victories of Csesar in Gaul. His influence 
and the number of his partisans in Rome were great. He 
aided Pompeius and Crassus to get the consulate: he wag 
continued in his Gallic command. Pompeius took Africa and 
Spain as his province ; Crassus preferred the wealthy, luxu- 
rious Syria. Pompeius remained at Rome, and administered 
his provinces by lieutenants. Crassus hastened to Asia, where 
the Parthians were now in arms against the republic. He 
marched against them, crossed the Euphrates, and was near 
Carrhse defeated with great loss by Surena, the Parthian 
g. c. commander. He surrendered, and was put to death, and hii 
64. skull filled with molten gold as a reproach of his avarice. 

Julia, the wife of Pompeius, was also dead; the bonds 
which had kept the two most powerful and ambitious men of 
Rome from discord were now both removed. Pompeius could 
not endure a rival, Caesar a superior. All prudent men saw 
that the sword must be the arbiter. The nobility all looked 
up to Pompeius as the chief support of the aristocracy. He 
was appointed consul without a colleague. He remained still 
at Rome ; and the troops in his province were commanded by 
able and faithful officers. He sought to have the dictatorship 
renewed in his person. Caesar and his friends required that 
he should be nominated consul in his absence, as more ex- 
traordinary transgressions of usage had been done in the case 
of Pompeius. Csesar having now completed the conquest of 
Gaul, and thus established a frontier against the Germans, the 
people whom Italy had now most to dread, was meanwhile 
returning to Rome. All the towns of the province of Cisal- 
pine Gaul vied in rendering honors and hospitality to the 
amiable conqueror and tranquillizer of Gaul. Pompeius sent 
to demand of Caesar that he should give up two legions which 
he had lent him : they were given up. The senate then de- 
creed that Caesar should disband his legions, and seek the 
consulate like any other private man. The heads of the state 
and senate, from various motives, concurred in this decree. 
Cato, who never looked to expediency, but to right, supported 
it. Cicero in vain sought to mediate. Curio, a man of talent 
and eloquence, but profligate morals, and M. Antonius, his 
colleague m the tribunate, whose character resembled his, but 



*:!HAP VIU. ROME TILL THE END OF THE REPUBLIC. 139 

who excell(;d him in military skill, were zealous partisans of 
CiEsar. All the other public officers were on the side of 
Pompeius, who maintained that the army was averse to Cssar, 
and reckoned himself certain of the attachment of ten leg-ions. 
Without waiting for the declaration of Csesar, the senate, in 
an evil hour for them, issued their decree, that all the mem- 
bers of the executive should exert themselves for the defence 
of the republic, that troops should be raised, and Cn, Pom- 
peius supported out of the public treasury. Meantime Caesar's 
answer arrived, offering to disband his army, all but one 
legion, and to come and seek the consulate as a private citi- 
zen ; but even his presence was dreaded in Rome. When 
the news reached Csesar, he had but five cohorts with him ; 
the rest of his troops were dispersed in numerous towns. He 
was near Rimini, on the banks of a little stream called the 
Rubicon, where Proper Italy was considered to end, and 
which no general could venture to pass without permission 
of the senate, under penalty of being declared a public 
enemy. It was a moment of importance, not to Caesar only, 
but to the future world. Should he submit, or should he lead 
his army against Rome, against his country ] On horseback, 
in the open air, Caesar all night long pondered this weighty 
question. At daybreak, his anxious soldiers found him still 
riding to and fro, deep sunk in thought. At length he cried 
" The die is cast," gave his horse the spurs, and sprang across 
the stream, followed by his troops. 

Civil War of CcBsar and Pompeius. 

All the towns of Italy opened their gates to Caesar as he 
approached them ; the garrisons all joined his standard. Cor- 
finium alone resisted; but its garrison also passed over to 
Caesar, and Domitius, its governor, and his officers, entered 
the camp of the conqueror as captives, and experienced only 
clemency. On receiving intelligence of the approach of 
Caesar, Pompeius, Cicero, Cato, the consuls, and the senate 
abandoned Rome in haste, and fled to Capua. Caesar still ad- 
vanced, making every day proposals of peace. When he 
drew near to Brundusium, Pompeius and his friends passed 
over to Greece : he marched to Rome, assembled the senate 
and people, and declared that he was driven by the conduct 
of his enemies to act as he was doing. Then knowing that 
the main strength of Pompeius lay in the army in Spain, com- 
manded by Afranius and Petreius, he resolved to march agamst 
it without delay. He took money out of the treasury, and 
Bet out for Spain. Massilia opposed his passage, but soon was 
forced to open her gates. The obstacles presented by the 



140 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

rivers and mountains of Spain were surmounted by the genius 
of Csesar. The Pompeian generals, notwithstanding- their 
advantageous position, were forced to surrender themselves 
and their armies, without fighting a single battle. Having 
conquered the army, he hastened to engage the general, 
passed rapidly through Gaul and Italy, embarked at Brundu- 
sium, and landed his troops at Dyrrhachium, 

Pompeius had summoned to his standard the troops of the 
kings of the East, whom he had formerly vanquished; (jreece 
and Africa contributed to augment his forces ; the majesty of 
the senate was in his camp ; he himself called back the vigor, 
energy, and skill of his younger days. But he was not allowed 
to follow the dictates of his wisdom and experience ; his cause 
was regarded as that of the republic ; and each unwarlike 
senator fancied he had a right to blame and reproach the in- 
activity of the general. The army of Csesar was less nu- 
merous, but better composed ; his plans were controlled by 
none ; his soldiers placed implicit confidence in his talents and 
fortune. 

The judicious plan adopted by Pompeius was to protract 
the war, to weary out and exhaust by delay his adversary. 
The taunts of his associates induced him to quit his fortified 
camp. Instead of returning to Italy, where the name of the 
republic might have operated powerfully in his favor, he de- 
scended into the plains of Thessaly. He drew up his forces 
near Pharsalus. The Csesarians fell on with rapidity sword 
in hand. The cavalry on one of the wings of the Pompeians 
pursued a body of Caesarian cavalry, who had fled ; they 
passed the three ordinary ranks of a Roman army, when, to 
their surprise, they encountered a fourth : without a moment's 
deliberation, they fled to the neighboring heights. The op- 
posite Caesarian wing attacked that which was now denuded 
of its horse ; the three ranks of the Caesarian army fell into 
one ; the Pompeians could not resist the shock ; they gave 
way; Pompeius fled, and the day was irrecoverably lost. 
Caesar, with his usual humanity, rode through the field, call- 
ing on his men to spare the Roman citizens. All the letters 
and papers he found in the tent of Pompeius he committed 
to the flames, without reading them. Next day the rest of 
the Pompeian army surrendered. Cato, not yet despairing 
of the fortune of the republic, passed over to Corcyra, and 
thence to Africa, to renew the conflict now, not for Pompeius, 
but for the laws and constitution. 

Pompeius fled to the sea, and embarked for Lesbos, where 
his wife, Cornelia, was awaiting the event of the war. The 
niaxinis o^ philosophy which he had always cultivated, were 




141 



^IIAP. VIII. ROME TILL THE END OF THE REPUBLIC. 143 

now his consolation. In doubt whether he had better look to 
the Parthians, to Juba. king- of Numidia, or to Ptolemy of 
Egypt for support, he preferred the last, whose father his 
power had restored to his throne. He sailed for Eg-ypt : the 
ministers of the feeble young monarch dreaded his arrival j 
and by their treacherous contrivance, the great Roman was b. c 
murdered in sight of his wife, and his naked body cast on the 49. 
strand, where it was indebted for funeral honors to the grati- 
tude and humanity of an old Roman soldier. Caesar, who 
speedily arrived in Egypt, shed tears over the head of his 
rival which was presented to him. 

Events till the Death of Ccesar. 

The charms of Cleopatra, the fair queen of Egypt, detained 
Ceesar in Alexandria. In a tumult, excited by his partiality , 
for that princess against her brother, he narrowly escaped 
death by throwing himself into the sea, and swimming to a 
ship. A battle soon after took place ; the Egyptians were 
worsted, and Ptolemy lost his life in the waters. Caesar be- 
stowed the entire kingdom upon Cleopatra, who had two chil- 
dren by him. 

From Egypt Caesar proceeded to Lesser Asia against Phar- 
naces king of Pontus, probably to give the Pompeians an op- 
portunity of drawing together all their forces. Veni, vidi, 
vici was his account to the senate of the war against the 
Pontic prince. He soon made his appearance in Africa, and 
defeated all the armies opposed to him. Cato, no longer con- 
fiding in the republic, slew himself at Utica : his example 
was followed by Scipio, who had commanded the army. Juba 47 
and Petreius slew each other after supper. 

The other Pompeian commanders retired to Spain. At 
Munda the two sons of Pompeius gave battle to Csesar, who 
never ran greater risk of seeing fortune desert him. Despe- 
rate effort gained him the victory, and one of the sons of 
Pompeius remained slain on the field. The Pompeian party 
was now completely crushed ; all opposition to Caesar was 
at an end. He returned to Rome, and triumphed over all 
the countries he had subdued. He was entitled father of 
his country, and made dictator for life. Mild and clement, 
he persecuted none ; and Rome, beneath his sway, was en- 
joying tranquillity. As high pontiff", he undertook and ac- 
complished the reformation of the calendar, and formed the 
plan of a new^ legal code. Employment being necessary for 
the legions, war was meditated against the Parthians, to 
avenge the death of Crassus, or against the people on the 
poasts of the Black Sea. 



144 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

In her present state of corruption, the government of such 
a man as Csesar was the greatest blessing that could befall 
Rome. The virtues requisite in a republic were no longer 
to be found in her ; it was now her destiny to receive a mas- 
ter, and the world could riot match the man into whose hands 
the power had fallen. But the old Roman sentiments still 
smouldered in some bosoms; the lessons and acts of Cato 
were still remembered with approbation ; and a conspiracy 
was formed, in which some of the noblest and most virtuous 
men of Rome took part. Men who owed their lives to his 
clemency, their fortunes to his favor, impelled by a false idea 
of patriotism and public virtue, armed their hands against 
B. c him ; and on the ides of March, in the 708th year of Rome 
4^' Csesar fell in the senate-house, pierced by three-and-twenty 
wounds. 

Civil War with Brutus and Cassius. 

The two principal of the conspirators were Brutus and 
Cassius. Of the purity of their motives, especially of those 
of the former, there can be little doubt : the wisdom of them 
is more questionable. They removed a mild despot; they 
brought back on their country the days of Marius and Sulla. 

Cicero sought to establish concord by making the senate 
ratify all the acts of Ceesar, by bringing in an amnesty, and 
by sending the conspirators away to their respective prov- 
inces. But Marcus Antonius had, by a culpable lenity of the 
conspirators, been spared, and he now aimed at establishing 
his own power amidst the general confusion. Against him 
Cicero and the senate found it necessary to set up the young 
Octavianus, the nephew and adopted son of Caesar. Anto- 
nius began the war by attempting to drive Decimus Brutus, 
one of the conspirators, out of his province of Cisalpine Gaul. 
He besieged him in Mutina. The consuls, Hirtius and Pansa, 
marched to the relief of Brutus ; Octavianus joined them, 
and Antonius was forced to fly into Transalpine Gaul. The 
two consuls fell before Mutina, not without suspicion of 
treachery on the part of Octavianus, whose dissimulation and 
want of moral principle early began to display themselves. 
But the senate dreamed, that they would find no difficulty in 
keeping him down, if by his means they could get rid of 
Antonius. 

Lepidus and Plancus commanded armies in Gaul. Anto- 
ums gained them over to his side. He wrote to Octavianus, 
who, though appointed consul in the room of Pansa, was now 
every day on worse and worse terms with the senate, to show 
him that it would be more for his advantage to join him. A 



CH A P. VIII. ROME TILL THE END OF THE REPUBLIC. 147 

meeting" was held between the two and Lepidus, in a little g. ^ 
island formed by two streams, near the modern Bologna, and 43. 
a second triumvirate, of a far more odious character than the 
former, was agreed on. Tables of proscription were drawn 
up, containing the names of 300 senators, 2000 knights, and 
many other distinguished citizens. All ties of friendship and 
kindred were postponed to the gratification of ambition and 
revenge. In the fatal list were L. Caesar, the uncle of Anto- 
nius; Paulus, the brother of Lepidus; and Cicero, the friend 
and supporter of Octavianus. A man whose life and honor 
he had once defended was base and ungrateful enough to be 
the murderer of the great orator ; his head was brought to 
Fulvia, the widow of Ciodius and wife of Antonius; and with 
the mean revenge of a profligate woman, she pierced with 
her bodkin that tongue which had described in true and lively 
colors the vices and enormities of her husbands. 

The triumvirs resolved to destroy Cassius, who governed 
Syria, and Brutus, who commanded in Macedonia. The united 
army of the latter amounted to seventeen legions. The ar- 
mies engaged on the plain of Philippi, in Macedonia. Brutus 
was successful on his side, and took the camp of Octavianus. 4^ 
Cassius, who was opposed to Antonius, was not so fortunate. 
He thought, deceived by his short sight, that all was lost, and 
slew himself. A few days afterwards, Brutus, feeling that 
the fortune of the republic was gone, followed his example, 
and many other Romans of noble birth and lofty sentiments 
disdained to survive Brutus, Cassius, and the republic. 

War between Octavianus and Antonius, 

Sextus Pompeius alone remained to oppose the victors. 
His power was on the sea, and he long continued to give 
them uneasiness. Fulvia soon excited disturbance among^ 
the triumvirs themselves. Lepidus wavered which side to 
take ; but Octavianus gained over his legions, and deprived 
him of his rank and power. The unfortunate citizens were 
the victims of these quarrels between their masters. Octa- 
vianus's forty-seven legions must have lands, and the paternal 
properties of numerous respectable families were confiscated 
to gratify their cupidity. 

Antonius was in Asia. Pacorus the Parthian had invaded 
^he Roman dominions there, but was repelled by Ventidius. 
Antonius would avenge the honor of Rome by reciprocal in- 
vasion. He was ignorant of the nature of the country he en- 
tered, and was forced to retire with loss. He went to Egypt, 
and in the arms of Cleopatra abandoned himself to the licen- 
[1 tious indulgences he delighted in, and offended and insult?''^ 



148 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I, 

his wily colleag-ue by divorcing his virtuous sister, Octavia. 
Botli sides prepared for war. Octavianus, whose policy from 
the commencement had been to identify his own cause and 
that of the republic, and who, all his life long, affected to 
govern in the name of the senate, and under the ancient 
forms, gave out, that he took arms solely to prevent the re- 
public being subjected to an Egyptian. He proceeded to 
Greece with eight legions and five cohorts, and he had a fleet 
of 250 ships. His principal officer was M. Agrippa, a man 
of experience and ability. The engagement took place off 
the cape of Actium in Epirus. Cleopatra was there, and set 
the example of flight. She was followed by Antonius : the 
rout was total. Octavianus exercised clemency, and the 
greater part of the hostile army surrendered. He pursued 
the love-sick Antonius to Egypt, who, on a false report of the 
death of Cleopatra, threw himself on his sword; and the 
Egyptian queen, having in vain essayed her arts on the cold 
calculating Octavianus, sooner than be led in chains to adorn 
the triumph of the victor, and glut the eyes of the populace 
of Rome with the sight of the daughter and the last of the 
Ptolemies preceding the chariot of the adopted son of him 
w?ho had done homage to her charms, gave herself voluntary 
death by the bite of an asp, or the prick of a poisoned needle. 
Egypt, in the 295th year from the death of Alexander th« 
Great, became a Roman province, 
t c. In the same year, the 479th from the establishment of the 
S9- republic, the 724th from the building of the city, was CaBsar 
Octavianus, now styled Augustus, invested with all the power 
heretofore exercised by the consuls and tribunes of the peo- 
ple. He was a monarch, without appearing such. Every 
tenth year he affected to lay down and again receive his ex- 
traordinary powers from the senate and people. His sway 
was mild and beneficent ; stately edifices rose to adorn the 
city; public spectacles and abundance of food satisfied the 
people ; peace was enjoyed by all the empire. The memory 
of the republic was nearly obliterated ; old men only retained 
a recollection of its worst period, and shuddered as they called 
to mind the horrors of the civil wars, and the blood-tiaced 
tables of proscription. The reign of -Augustus was halcyon 
days after those storms ; but, unhappily for Rome, this state 
was of no long and steady duration. The government was 
one of power, not of law; it was a despotism; and soon, be- 
neath the tyranny and caprice of the emperors, even the tur- 
bulencs of the latter days of the republic was looked bick to 
witli a sigh of regret. 



CHAP IX. ROME AN LMPlRE. 151 

CHAP. IX. 

ROME AN EMPIRE. 

Emperors of the CcBsarian Family. 

Among the titles of Augustus was thatof Imperator, whence 
emperor, a word derived from the ancient language of Italy,* 
and signifying general of an army. It was retained by his 
successors, as was also that of Csesar, his family name. 

The empire over which Augustus now ruled extended, in 
Europe, to the ocean, the Rhine, and the Danube ; in Asia, to 
the Euphrates ; in Africa, to ^Ethiopia and the sandy deserts. 
Its population was estimated at 120 millions. Satisfied with 
this extent of dominion, Augustus sought not himself to ex- 
tend it, and advised his successors to be guided by his exam- 
ple. He therefore abstained from wars, except such on the 
frontiers as were deemed necessary to keep up the skill and 
discipline of the legions, and inspire the barbarians with a 
salutary dread of Rome. In these slight wars the imperial 
arms were usually successful : one memorable defeat alone is 
recorded : the legions of Varus were cut to pieces by the a. d. 
German leader, Herman, or Arminius. The preetorian guards, 10 
afterwards so fatal to the empire, were instituted by Augus- 
tus to protect his person, and to crush the first germs of re- 
bellion. But he dispersed them through Italy, and they knew 
not then their own strength. 

The temple of Janus, to close which in time of peace had 
been a ceremony in use from the origin of the state, was 
three times closed during the reign of this pacific prince. The 
arts and sciences which adorn peace were warmly patronized 
by him and his minister the accomplished MecsBnas. The 
house of Augustus, for he dwelt not in a palace, was the re- 
sort of the poet and the scholar. The monarch himself was 
a writer, and he enjoyed the felicity, rare in his station, of 
possessing friends. By the people he was adored as a god. 

Yet the happiness of Augustus was not without alloy. He 
could not, though he might seek to palliate by the plea of 
necessity, efface the recollection of the proscription-tables of 
his younger days, and the base surrender of his friend the 
virtuous Cicero. The defeat of Varus haunted his dreams by 
night. He had no male issue to succeed him ; he had to 
mourn over the untimely death of the promising youth Mar- 
ceilus and of the valiant Drusus ; and the profligacy of his 

♦ Embratur is the term in tbeSamnite language. 



D. 



152 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PART 1 

daughter Julia, and the insatiable ambition of his wife Livia, 
_ en)bitter<3d his declining days,. Augustus died at Nola in 

iZ Campania, in the 76th year of his age, having governed Rome 
with absolute sway during forty-four years. 
I In> the year of Rome 753, while the world was enjoying 
peace under Augustus, and the " fullness oi" time" was come, 
it pleased the Almighty to send forth his Son Jesus Christ, 
as the announcer of a religion more pure and holy than any 
he had yet given to man. To relate the circumstances of the 
life and death of the Son of God (with which every r£ader 
must be supposed familiar) would be here superfluous.^ His 
religion, though persecuted, gradually spread over the. Roman 
world. Unhappily, it is in its corrupted state that it becomes 
a prominent object in history. 

Tiberius, the son of Livia, and stepson of Augustus, was 

14. appointed by him to succeed. This prince was now in his 
55th year. All the bad qualities of his predecessor were 
united in him; his good ones were ahsent. A dark and 
crooked policy characterized all his acts : the establishment 
of perfect despotism, the abolition of all forms of the republic, 
was his object. Restrained at first by fear of the noble Ger- 
manicus, when that check was removed by death, not with- 
out suspicion of poison, he gave a loose to all his cruel and 

l£ sensual propensities. In his later years, he retired to the 
island of Caprea in the bay of Naples, where he wallowed in 
every species of beastly and sensual gratification. His cruel- 
ties at Rome were meantime directed by his minister Sejanus, 
until, grown suspected by his master, he was by his order put 
to death. Tiberius dying left the world to a monster still 
more ferocious than himself. 

37 Caius Caligula, the son of Germanicus, and grandnephew 
of Tiberius, displayed tyranny in its most appalling form. 
His reign commenced with mildness ; but at the end of the 
first year, after a violent fit of illness, which, perhaps, disor- 
dered his intellect, a cruelty, the most absurd and capricious 
that can be conceived, commenced. While he meditated 
raising his horse to the consulship, and fed him out of gold, 
he slaughtered the noblest men of Rome without mercy, 
drove men in herds before the judgment-seat to receive sen- 
tence of death, and hunted the spectators of a public show 
into the waters of the Tiber. Four years the empire groaned 
beneath the cruelty of this fi-antic savage. At length the 
dagger of Chaereas delivered the world of him. -^ 

On the death of Caius, the senate, detesting the tyranny 

41. of the Caesars, deliberated on restoring the republic, and 
abolishing the imperial power. But ere two days had elapsed, 



ouAP. IX. no^TE an empire. 155 

they had to learn, to their mortification, that there was now 
in existence a power greater than theirs or that of the em- 
perors. Tiberius had collected the praetorian guards, a body 
of 10,000 men, from the quarters in which the policy of Au- 
gustus" had kept them dispersed ; and, under pretext of re- 
lieving Italy and of improving their discipline, had fixed them 
in a strongly-fortified camp on the Viminal and Quirinal 
hills. The guards now first exhibited their power: they 
proclaimed Claudius, the weak-minded brother of Caius, em- 
peror, and the senate received with submission their feeble 
ruler. Not naturally bloody, yet the instrument of women 
and freedmen, the annals of his reign exhibit thirty-five sen- 
ators and three hundred knights felling by the hand of the 
executioner during the thirteen years that he filled the throne. 
Claudius was poisoned, to make room for his successor. \. d 

Domitius Nero was the son of Agrippina, and pupil of 54. 
Seneca. The first five years of his reign were mild and just. 
But his furious passions soon grew impatient of restraint. He 
put to death his mother, his brother, his tutor; set fire to the 
city, charged the Christians with the crime, and began the 
persecution of that sect. He prostituted the dignity of his 
station, and the majesty of Rome, by appearing as a singer 
on the public stage. The patience of mankind could no 
longer endure this combination of cruelty, insult, debauchery, 
and meanness: several conspiracies were formed against 
him, but without success; the tyrant discovering them in 
time. At length Galba was declared emperor, and Nero by 
the senate pronounced a public enemy, and sentenced to 
death more majorum, which sentence he avoided by a volun- 
tary death. Yet, vile as he was, there were those who loved his 
memory, and raised monuments to the monster who had per- 
petrated so many crimes. It is not undeserving of notice, that 
within a century after the death of Cato, the senate, which 
once gave laws to the world, was convoked on the solemn 
occasions of the marriage of Nero with two of his own sex. 
So utterly can the greatest institutions be degraded ! 

Ernperors chosen by the Army. 

Galba, a man of honorable birth and advanced age, was 68. 
raised to the throne by the army which he commanded ui 
Spain. The senate confirmed the choice of the army ; but 
he sought to restrain the praetorians, and he atoned for his 
boldness with his life. 

Otho, the partaker of the guilty pleasures of Nero, was f ' 

? laced on the throne by the party which murdered Galba. 
^he army of the Rhine had meantime proclaimed their gen- 



156 HTFTOHY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

eral Vitellius. Otho, though a voluptuary, still retained some 
noble feelings ; and when in the battle at Bedriacum victory 
had declared for the generals of Vitellius, Otho, to spare thf 
blood of citizens, put a voluntary termination to his own life. 
A. D. Vitellius, devoted to the pleasures of the table, viewed the 
70. imperial power only as affording the means of unbounded in 
dulgence. But he was soon roused from his dream of luxury, 
by tidings of the Syrian army having proclaimed their gene- 
ral Flavins Vespasianus worthiest of the throne. Vitellius 
terminated his brief reign by a cruel death. 

During this period the tranquillity of the empire was dis- 
turbed in every quarter. The Jews, oppressed by their gov- 
ernors, torn by parties, deceived by a false interpretation, but 
flattering to their national vanity, of their ancient prophecies, 
broke out into rebellion, which, persisted in with obstinacy 
and judicial blindness, cost their nation the remnant of their 
independence, the lives of three hundred thousand men, their 
noble city, and the magnificent temple of Jehovah, the point 
of union and pride of Israel. Rome, too, witnessed, at this 
period, a second conflagration of the splendid temple of Jupi- 
ter Optimus Maximus, which crowned the Capitol. It seemed 
as if the wrath of Heaven was now poured out on guilty man 
and his works. At Rome were to be seen each day the ex- 
cesses of the soldiery, the clash of arms, and false charges 
brought before judicial tribunals ; war menaced or devastated 
the provinces; Civilis raised Gaul in rebellion; the Germans 
passed the Rhine ; the Partliian cavalry hovered ready to 
descend on Syria. 

The Flavian Family. 

70. Vespasian was at the head of the army acting against the 
rebellious Jews, when he was proclaimed emperor. He re- 
paired to Rome, leaving his son, the mild and virtuous Titus, 
to carry on the war. Though raised to the throne by the 
army, he would receive his power from the senate, who be- 
stowed on him all the oflices, rights, and powers held by Augus- 
tus, Tiberius, and Claudius, in as full and unlimited a manner 
as they had possessed them ; and by his conduct during the 
nine years he reigned, he showed himself deserving of the 
absolute power he possessed. 

The empire now enjoyed peace. Titus had ended the 
Jewish war. The Parthians, seeing no internal discord, ab- 
stained from hostilities. Judicial persecution ceased at Rome. 
TSe emoeror and his son lived on terms of intimacy with the 
best anJ wisest men. Thft senate regained its consideration. 
The finances were pnt into a proper condition ; military dis- 




14 



157 



CHAP. IX. ROME AN EMPIRE. 159 

cipline restored; cities built, and roads constructed. An 
excessive frugality, hardly, in such times, to be regarded as 
a fault, was the blemish most observed in the character of 
Vespasian. His death would have been an irreparable loss 
to Rome, had he not left such a successor as Titus. 

Titus, the Delight of Mankind^ amiable, just, generous, a &. 
and brave, reigned but for two short years, and in that space '^^^ 
this virtuous prince had to witness many calamities. His 
heart was torn with anguish at being obliged to part with the 
Jewish princess Berenice, whom he loved so tenderly ; Vesu- 
vius raged with unwonted fury, and buried beneath its ashes 
the towns of Herculaneum, Pompeii, and Stabiae, and wasted 
a large portion of Campania ; a conflagration broiie out in 
Rome, and destroyed a great part of the city, and this was 
followed by a destructive pestilence. 

Domitian, the brother of Titus, succeeded. The happiness 81, 
of the empire seemed to have expired with his father and 
brother, and Nero to have returned to life. Yet Domitian - 
dreaded to venture on tlie excesses of this last-named tyrant, 
and fear set some bounds to his cruelty. He exhausted the 
treasury, while he embellished the city with magnificent 
buildings, and engaged in expensive and inglorious wars. 
His reign was, however, distinguished by the real conquest 
of Britain by the gallant Agricola, whose death the jealous 
emperor, if he did not occasion, did not regret. After a tyran- 
ny of fifteen years, his life and reign were terminated by 
a conspiracy, in which his own wife shared. 

The good Emperors. 

The senate was assembled on the death of the tyrant, and %• 
the purple was oflfered to Nerva, one of their body, a just 
and virtuous man, but far advanced in life. To give security 
to his authority, and assure a virtuous successor to the empire, 
he adopted the valiant and upright Trajan, who then com- 
manded a large army in Lower Germany. The aged em- 
peror, at the same time, declared him his colleague for life in 
the empire. Nerva, during his short reign, reduced the 
taxes, and made a distribution of lands among the poor. 

Trajan was forty years of age when adopted by Nerva: ga 
of his virtue a decisive evidence was exhibited, for more than 
250 years after his death, in the acclamation of the senate 
to each new emperor, wishing him to be more fortunate than 
Augustus, more virtuous than Trajan. The military and 
pacific virtues were united in this accomplished prince. Just 
and upright, he listened to the meanest suitor ; affable, he 
•vas accessible to the lowest citizen. During a reign of 



160 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I 

nineteen years but* one senator suffered death, and he was 
condemned by his own order. He lightened the burdens ot 
the provinces, declaring- that the hearts of loving subjects 
should be his treasures. He selected his ministers and friends 
from among the virtuous and the good : he perfected the 
code of laws, adorned Rome with stately buildings, and 
founded a magnificent library. In war he extended the bounds 
of the empire beyond the limits set to it by Augustus ; con- 
quered the fruitful plains and hills of Dacia; curbed the 
wild hordes of Caucasus ; bowed to submission the emirs of 
the Arabian deserts ; avenged the fate of Crassus, and took 
Ctesiphon, the Parthian capital. . The ships of Trajan visited 
the coasts of India. He died at Seleucia, in Cilicia ; whence 
his body was brought to Rome, where it was received by the 
whole senate and people, and buried in the forum, which 
bore his name, beneath the lofly pillar which rises to the 
height of 140 feet, adorned with his deeds. 

4. D. Hadrian, it is thought, had been adopted by Trajan. He 

117. was also an able and virtuous prince, though not the equal 
of his great predecestjor. Hadrian wisely gave up several 
of the conquests of Trajan, and reduced the empire to its old 
bounds of the Rhine, the Danube, and the Euphrates, and 

121. raised in Britain a barrier against the incursions of the un- 
tamed Caledonians. During his reign a formidable insurrec- 
tion of the Jews, under an impostor, named Barchochebas, 
broke out, which was extinguished in the blood of thousands 
of that obstinate and misguided people. This emperor made 
a progress through his dominions, redressing grievances and 
diminishing taxes ; and he regulated his court in the most 
exact manner. He was devoted to the fine arts, though his 
taste was none of the purest. As age came on, he grew 
peevish and cruel ; but the effects of these ill qualities were 
mitigated by the mildness and gentleness of Antoninus, whom 
he had adopted on the death of his favorite Lucius Verus. 

138 Antoninus, surnamed the Pious, from his affection for his 
adoptive father, was one of those rare combinations of perfect 
virtue which the visions of philosophy, rather than real life, 
present as seated on a throne. His reign flowed on, for a 
space of twenty-three years, in dignified tranquillity : wars 
interrupted not the repose of the empire : neighboring na- 
tions submitted their differences to the arbitration of the 
virtuous Antoninus. He closed his beneficent career by 
leaving the guidance of the empire to an accomplished phi- 
losopher 

161. Marcus Aurelius Antoninus would willingly have trodden 
the tranquil course of his predecessor ; but the restless ene- 



CHAP IX. ROME AN EMPIRE. 161 

niijes of thi; empire summoned the philosophic monarch to 
the defence of the frontiers, and to give a proof that the study 
of philosophy does not disqualify for action* Nations of Ger- 
manic race united, as in the days of Marius, to pour in upon 
Italy ; but Aurelius showed them, that the legions of Rome 
still retained their discipline and valor. The Parthians broke 
into Syria : the emperor speedily drove them back within 
their own limits. Foreign war was not the only calamity 
that afflicted the empire in this reign ; famine and its constant 
attendant pestilence, ravaged various provinces. The Ger- 
mans, though beaten, still renewed their attempts, and the 
emperor died during his eighth winter campaign against the 
Marcomanni. Aurelius was, like Augustus, unhappy in his 
family : his wife Faustina disgraced him by her licentiousness ; 
and the disposition of his son Commodus afforded slender 
grounds for pleasing hope. 

From Commodus to Diocletian. 

The most vicious succeeded the most virtuous of mankind, a. d. 
Commodus, the son of Aurelius, was a profligate, foolish boy. ^^^* 
His delight was in the indulgence of low sordid propensities; 
he sought for glory in gladiatorial skill ; while he degraded 
the majesty of the empire, by setting the example of pur- 
chasing peace from the barbarians. His father had made the 
Marcomanni feel the edge of the Roman steel ; his degene- 
rate son bestowed upon them Roman gold. Oppressive taxa- 
tion once more galled the subjects; the blood of the virtuous 
was once more seen to flow; the favor of his father availed 
not to save ; Salvius Julian us, the great lawyer, whom Au- 
relius had honored, died by the order of Commodus. The 
emperor had nothing to fear from the Praetorians, whom he 
indulged in all their excesses. These were his protectors 
against all others, and he might mock at all plots of the sen- 
ate or people ; but he carried his tyranny, whither it was 
rarely carried with impunity, into his own household, and a 
conspiracy delivered the Roman world of the wretch who 
oppressed it. 

Murder thus, after a long interval, again made its appear- 
ance in the palace of the Csesars, and now seemed to have 
made it its permanent abode. Helvius Pertinax, the prefect 193 
of the city, a man of virtue, was placed on the throne by 
the conspirators, who would fain justify their deed in the 
eyes of the world, and their choice was confirmed by the 
senate. But the PrsBtorians had not forgotten their own 
power on a similar occasion ; and they liked not the virtue 
14* 



162 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART T. 

and regularity of the new monarch. Pertinax waw, there- 
fore, speedily deprived of throne and life. 

Praetorian insolence now attained its height. Regardless 
of the dignity and honor of the empire, they set it up to auc- 
tion. The highest bidder was a senator, named Didius Ju- 

i, D. lianus, a nephew of that very Salvius who had suffered for 

193. law and virtue in the reign of Commodus. The legions dis- 
dained to receive an emperor from the life-guards. Those ot 
Britain proclaimed their general Clodius Albinus ; those of 
Asia, Pescennius Niger ; the Pannonian legions, Septimius 

ly* Severus. This last was a man of bravery and conduct : by 
valor and stratagem he successively vanquished his rivals. He 
maintained the superiority of the Roman arms against the 
Parthians and Caledonians. His reign was vigorous and ad- 
vantageous to the state ; but he wanted either the courage or 
the power to fully repress the license and insubordination of 
the soldiery. 

811. Severus left the empire to his two sons. Caracalla, the 
elder, a prince of violent and untamable passions, disdained 
to share empire with any. He murdered his brother and col- 
league, the more gentle Geta, and put to death all who ven- 
tured to disapprove of the deed. A restless ferocity distin- 
guished the character of Caracalla : he was ever at war, now 
on the banks of the Rhine, now on those of the Euphrates. 
His martial impetuosity daunted his enemies ; his reckless 
cruelty terrified his subjects. But the army loved the prince, 
who set no value on any but a soldier. Alexander the Great 
was the model this profligate fratricide dared to set before 
him. No greater insult could be offered to the memory of 
the Macedonian. During a Parthian war, Caracalla gave 
ofience to Macrinus, the commander of his body-guard, who 
murdered him. 

218. Macrinus seized the empire, but had not power to hold it. 
He and his son Diadumenianus, an amiable youth of but 
eighteen years, were put to death by the army, who pro- 
claimed a supposed son of their beloved Caracalla. 

2ib This youth was named Elagabalus, and was priest of the 
Sun in the temple of Emesa, m Syria. Every vice stained 
the character of this licentious, effeminate youth, whose name 
is become proverbial for sensual indulgence: he possessed no 
redeeming quality, had no friend, and was put to death by his 
own guards, who, vicious as they were themselves, detested 
vice in him. 

822 Alexander Severus, cousin to Elagabalus, but of a totally 
opposite character, succeeded that vicious, prince. All es- 
timable qualities were united in the noble and accomplished 



CHAP. IX. ROME AN EMPIRE. 163 

Alexander. He delighted in the society of the learned and 
the wise ; the statues of the sages of all countries adorned 
his library ; and their works, destined for the improvement of 
mankind, formed his constant study. But the love of learning 
and virtue did not in him smother military skill and valor ; 
he checked the martial hordes of Germany, and led the Ro- 
man eagles to victory against the Sassanides, who had dis- 
placed the Arsacides in the dominion over Persia,* and re- 
vived the claims of the house of Cyrus over Anterior Asia. 
Alexander, victorious in war, beloved by his subjects, deemed 
he might venture on introducing more regular discipline into 
the army. The attempt was fatal, and the amiable monarch 
lost his life in the mutiny that resulted. 

Maximin, a soldier, originally a Thracian shepherd, distin- a. d. 
guished by his prodigious size, strength, and appetite, a 235 
stranger to all civic virtues and all civic rules, rude, brutal, 
cruel, and ferocious, seated himself on the throne of the noble 
and virtuous prince, in whose murder he had been a chief 
agent. At Rome the senate conferred the vacant dignity on 
Gordian, a noble, wealthy, and virtuous senator, and on his 
son, of the same name, a valiant and spirited youth. But 
scarcely were they recognized, when the son fell in an en- 
gagement, and the father slew himself Maximin was now 
rapidly marching towards Rome, full of rage and fury. De- 
spair gave courage to the senate; they dominated Balbinus 
and Pupienus, one to direct the internal, the other the exter- 
nal affairs. Maximin had advanced as far as Aquileia, when 
his horrible cruelties caused an insurrection against him, and 
he and his son, an amiable youth, were murdered. The army 
was not, however, willing to acquiesce in the claim of the 
senate to appoint an emperor. Civil war was on the point 
of breaking out, when the conflicting parties agreed in the 
person of the third Gordian, a boy of but thirteen years of age. 

Gordian III. was an amiable and virtuous youth. In affairs 238 
of state he was chiefly guided by his father-in-law, Misitheus, 
who induced him to engage in war against the Persians. In 
the war Gordian displayed a courage worthy of any of his 
predecessors ; but he shared what was now become the usual 
fate of a Roman emperor. He was murdered by Philip, the 
captain of his guard. 

Philip, an Arabian by birth, originally a captain of free- •244. 
footers, seized on the purple of his murdered sovereign. Two 
rivals arose and contended with him for the prize, but accom- 
plished nothing. A third competitor, Decius, the commander 

* See p. 57. 



4rD, 



164 HISTORY OF THK WORLD. PART I. 

of the army of the Danube, defeated and slew him near 
Verona. During the reign of Philip, Rome attained her 
thousandth year ; and the games to commemorate the dura- 
tion of the city of-Romulus, Brutus, and Csesar, were cele- 
brated by the native of a country scarcely known, even by 
name, to the kings and consuls ! 

Decius, a prince of rigid virtue and primitive simplicity of 

249. manners, sought to restore its ancient tone to the Roman 
character ; but the time for reformation was long gone by ; a 
new character was now completely and fixedly formed. The 
well-meant projects of the emperor failed, and himself fell hi 
battle, in defence of his country against the invading Goths. 

?51. In the space of two years reigned and fell four emperors, 

253. Gallus, Volusian, Hostilian, son of Decius, and ^milian. 
The Germans still pressed on Italy, the Persians on Syria. 

253. Valerian succeeded. His rigor and virtue as a censor had 
been applauded ; as an emperor, he showed feebleness and in- 
capacity. He associated his son Gallienus in the empire with 
him. In the war against Shahpoor of Persia he was defeated 
and taken prisoner. The haughty Persian subjected the cap- 
tive emperor to every indignity. The Roman spirit wai 
gone; he submitted with patience, and his luxurious col- 
league revelled heedless of his father's sufferings. 

26J. . Gallienus, devoted to sensual indulgence, lived tranquilly 
in Italy. But in the various provinces, Britain, Gaul, Spain 
Syria, Africa, &c., and even in Italy, numerous claimants of 
the imperial dignity arose. Some of these were men of merit, 
almost all persons of military skill and valor. Though the 
empire was thus torn and confused, its constant enemies, 
the Germans and Persians, were unable to seize any part. 
This is usually denominated The time of the thirty tyrants^ 
though (as far as we can collect from coins) they did not ex- 
ceed tw^enty-one, and are unjustly designated as tyrants. But 
some fancied analogy to Critias and his colleagues at Athens 
presented itself, and mankind love analogies and round num- 
bers. None of these rivals gave much uneasiness to Gallie- 
nus, who would have been well content with Italy alone, till 
Aureolus threatened to deprive him even of that. He then 
marched to battle against him at Milan ; but ere he took the 
city, he was murdered, naming, with his last breath, the most 
worthy to be his successor. 

268. Claudius was the most worthy. He delivered Italy from 
the Goths, by a victory such as Rome had not seen since the 
days of Marius. But his reign was of short duration, and 
would have been more deeply lamented were it not for the 
virtues and talents of his successor. 




16:^ 



CHAP. IX. ROME AN EMPIRE. 167 

Aurelian, a man bred in camps, brought to the throne the a » 
valor, activity, and vigor that it required. He introduced or- ^^^ 
der into the state, and restored the empire to internal tran- 
quillity. He defeated the Germans, and even pursued them 
into their forests, vanquished all his rivals, and among- them 
Zenobia, or Zeinab, the heroic queen of Palmyra, who, in 
chains of gold, adorned the triumph in which the emperor 
entered Rome. Aurelian never lost a battle : he was clement 
to the conquered, indulgent to the people and the army, but 
averse to the senate. He was murdered on his way against 
the Persians. 

The army was now cither satisfied with the long exercise 
of its power in appointing emperors, or it saw the evils likely 
tO arise to the empire in general from each army investing 
its leader with the purple. Accordingly, on the death of 
Aurelian, they restored its privileges to the senate, who, 
after an interreign of eight months, bestowed the purple on 27i» 
Tacitus, a man of virtue and probity. Tacitus was far ad- 
vanced in years when he was placed on the throne, which be 
occupied for a few months with honor, and then died a natu- 
ral death. 

After the death of Tacitus, his brother Florianus, who lit- 
tle resembled him, aspired to the empire. Neither senate 
nor army approved of him, and the latter bestowed the pur 
pie on their virtuous and able commander, Probus, who, to 
the more rigorous virtues of Aurelian, united a gentleness 276. 
and moderation, to which that able prince had been a stranger. 
The senate approved of the choice of the army. Probus de- 
feated the Germans on the Danabe and the Rhine. He in- 
troduced into their country the culture of the vine, and em- 
ployed the legions in the labors of the field and the vineyard. 
This, united with the strict discipline he sought to revive, 
excited their indignation: they rose in munity, murdered, 
and then lamented their excellent emperor. 

Caras, the commander of the body-guard, was raised to the 282 
empire, in which he associated with himself his two sons, 
Carinus and Numerian, the former of a dissolute, the latter 
of a more gentle and cultured disposition. Carus was es- 
teemed a good general, but his reign was short ; he was killed 
by lightning in his tent, or possibly murdered by those who 
spread that report. His son Numerian was shortly afterwards 
murdered by his father-in-law Aper, the prsBtorian prefect. 
The traitor expiated his crime by death. Carinus was slain 
by a man whose conjugal honor he had insulted. 



168 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. , PART I. 

Change in the Form of Government. 

284. A fter the death of Carus and his sons, the reigns of empire 
fell into the firm hands of Diocletian, by birth a Dalmatian, a 
wise and able prince. The enemies of the empire pressed 
now with redoubled force on the frontiers, and Diocletian 
*aw that the vigilance and activity of one mind could not 
suffice to attend to the multifarious concerns of the state. 
The events of the last reigns had also taught him the danger 
of committing the command of the legions to officers who 
might so readily become competitors for the throne. He 
therefore resolved to share the imperial dignity with his 
friend and comrade in arms, Maximianus Herculius, to whom, 
as being of a rugged active character, he committed the 
West, while himself took charge of the East. Each bore the 
title of Augustus, and each appointed a successor under that 
of Csesar. The CsBsars were younger and more active men, 
and the more exposed parts of the empire were committed to 
them. Diocletian administered Asia; his Cgesar, Galerius, 
rough and soldierly, governed Thrace and the countries on 
tlie Danube. Maximian retained Italy, Spain, Africa, and 
the islands; his Cassar, Constantius Chlorus, a worthy de- 
scendant of the late emperor Claudius, governed Gaul and 
Britain. Rome ceased to be an imperial residence : that of 
Maximian was mostly at Milan ; Diocletian resided chiefly at 
Nicomedia. A farther innovation made by this emperor was 
the introduction of the oriental splendor of attire and adora- 
tion of the emperors. He and his colleague with great so- 
lemnity assumed, on the same day, the diadem and other 
insignia of eastern royalty. 

Perhaps nothing better could have been devised for main- 
taining the empire than this partition of power. The expe- 
rienced monarchs could give attention to internal affairs, 
while the yoimger and more active emperors elect, away 
from the corruption of capitals, might keep up the discipline 
and military virtues of the legions. Accordingly we find that 
the Goths were held in check, the Allemanni defeated, Brit- 
ain, where Carausius had in the late reign raised a rebellion, 
reduced to obedience, and the Persians forced to a peace ad- 
vantageous and honorable to the empire. But it was not to 
be expected that four princes could reign together in una- 

'^ nimity, or that Csesars would patiently wait till death made 
way for them to the higher rank. It was not long, therefore, 
before contention and war broke out among them. 

While Diocletian ruled, he kept his colleagues in bounds, 
exerting over them the influence of a superior mind. Bu- 



CHAP. IX. ROME AN EMPIRE. 169 

after a reign of twenty years, feeling the infirmities of age 
approach, he resolved to abandon the cares of empire, and 
retire to pass the evening of his life in seclusion in his native 
province. He signified his intention to Maximian, who re- 
luctantly assented to a joint abdication. The CaRsars were 
raised to the rank of Augusti: Constantius was assigned 
Severus for his Caesar ; Galerius conferred that dignity on 
his nephew Daza. 

Constantius did not long enjoy the dignity he adorned. Ga- 
lerius soon became odious to the Romans ; and Maximian 
took advantage of this circumstance to make his son Maxen- 
tiu 3 master of Italy. Severus was forced to yield. . In the y 

mean time, Constantino, the son of Constantius, had com- 
pletely won the hearts of the British and Gallic legions, by 
his' military and civil virtues, and he soon forced Galerius and 
M>ixentius to acknowledge him as joint-emperor. 

The debauchery and cruelty of Maxentius were now grown 
inl olerable to the Romans. The nobles fled from the city ; 
th<'. labors of agriculture were neglected; his own father was 
foi ced to fly from him and take refuge with Constantino, who 
had married his daughter. Bat the restless and depraved 
old man could not abstain from machinations against his son- 
in-law and protector ; and Constantino, not to be himself the 
victim, compelled him to end his unquiet life by voluntary 
death, the mode of which was left to his own choice. Invited 
by the Roman nobles, Constantino marched against Maxen- 312. 
tins. A battle took place in the neighborhood of Rome : Max- 
entius fell, and the whole West obeyed Constantino. 

Galerius was now dead, and his nephew, Maximianus Daza, 
whom he had raised to the rank of a Csssar, had follow- 
ed him. Constantine associated with himself Licinius, a 
man who by military merit had risen to the dignity of a 
Csesar. They named their sons, Crispus and Licinius, to be 
their Caesars. The old emperor Diocletian died, as was said, 
by his own hand, about this time. 

Constantine now openly professeH himself a Christian. He 311 
put an end to the persecution whicu had raged against that 
sect for the last ten years with all the violence of the ex- 
piring storm. His conversion, perhaps, was sincere : possibly 31* 
he saw that the Christians were become the most powerfijl 
body in the empire, and that the wisest policy was to give 
way to what could not be resisted without imminent danger. 
He issued two edicts ; one assigning them the temples of the 
gods, in places where they had not suitable churches ; the 
other, giving them the preference in all appointments to civil 
and military offices; and thus, in less than three centuries 
15 



170 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

from its origin, Christianity became, in effect, the established 
religion of the empire. Constantine, however, deferred his 
baptism till a little before his death. 

Unanimity did not long- subsist between the emperors. 
Wars broke out, and Ijcinius was eventually deprived of his 
A. I), dignity and life by his victorious colleague, who now reigned 
324. alone. Seeing that the North-east, where the powerful nation 
of the Goths was settled, was the quarter from which most 
danger was to be apprehended, and also the growing strength 
of Persia, Constantine deemed Rome too remote a residence 
330. for the sovereign, and he fixed on Byzantium, which he en- 
larged and named from himself, as the seat of imperial 
power. This measure has been blamed, as leaving Italy ex- 
posed to the irruptions of the barbarians ; but continuance at 
Rome, or any other plan to ward off the inevitable evil, weuld 
have been equally exposed to censure. The virtue and energy 
which had gained the empire were gone ; the tribes of the 
North had added skill and discipline to their numbers, strength, 
and courage. 

Corruption of Christianity. 

The Christian religion, as given to man by its divine Au- 
thor, was perfect in truth and simplicity; but it was sent 
forth into a world in which error abounded, and the stream 
had hardly lefl the fountain when it became defiled with 
mundane impurities. Earnestly and repeatedly does the 
zealous Paul inveigh against those who • mingled what he 
called the " beggarly elements" and the " fables" of Judaism 
with the spiritual precepts of the Gospel ; and strongly does 
he warn to avoid " profane and vain babblings, and oppositions 
of knowledge, falsely so called." But the evil was not to 
be checked, and Oriental and Grecian philosophy rapidly 
mingled with Gospel simplicity. 

The heat of eastern climates inspires indolence and the 
love of contemplation. The human mind becomes absorbed 
in rapturous visions of light and expanse, and men learn to 
regard the soul, the commencement of whose existence they 
cannot conceive, as having descended from the realms of su- 
pernal light into the body, its present darksome dungeon, 
whence it was to reascend to its former blissful abode. Hence 
the body being a prison, and matter evil, the object of the 
soul was to emancipate itself from their influence. This 
was to be best effected, it was thought, by mortification of 
the flesh and senses; and hence the voluntary mutilations, 
the corporeal tortures, rigid abstinence, and all that system 
of self-torment which distinguiches the yogee, the fekeer, and 




171 



CHAP IX. ROME AN EMPIRE. 173 

the monk. Others, but fewer in number, drew a contrary 
ronclusion, and maintained that the acts of its impure com- 
panion were indifferent to the pure soul ; and they freely in- 
diilg'ed in the practice of the grossest sensuality. 

This eastern doctrine, mixed with the Persian one of the 
two principles, entered, under the name of Gnosis, or knoiV' 
ledge, into Christianity, even in the days of the apostles; and 
it was, perhaps, already not unknown to the Essenes. All 
the heresies of which we read in the early days of tiie church 
were founded, more or less, on the Gnosis ; and one of the 
favorite doctrines of these sects was, that this world and its 
creator were evil, and that Jesus was a being produced by 
wisdom, who took the appearance of a body, in which he was 
apparently crucified by the agents of the creator of the world. 

With this knowledge of the East the philosophy of the 
West combined to debase the truth of the Gospel. This phi- 
losophy was the New Platonism, which had fixed its chief 
seat at Alexandria, in Egypt, a country ever fertile of error 
and corruption. Its followers undertook the defence of the 
old religion ; they allegorized all its hidecent and extravagant 
legends, and set it in opposition to the new faith. Some of 
these philosophers became Christians, and retained their love 
of mystery and word-straining artifices: some Christians 
were educated in their schools. The Jews of Egypt had, as 
the works of Philo show, long since been familiar with the 
allegorizing system, which was now unsparingly applied to 
the simple precepts and narrations of the Old Testament : 
and the sober Christian of the present day would stare with 
amazement at the numerous and marvellous senses they were 
made to bear in the writings of the learned Origen. By this 
system any words could be made to bear any sense; and 
what a field for corruption this gave, is too evident to need 
proof Yet, as evil has always its attendant good, this very 
corruption of Christianity may have aided its diffusion, by 
procuring it a more ready acceptance among the educated 
classes of society, whose taste had long lost all relish for 
truth and simplicity. 

A veneration for departed excellence is one of the most 
natural and praiseworthy principles of our nature ; hence no 
one can blame the early Christians for visiting with respect 
the tombs of those who died beneath heathen tortures rather 
than renounce their faith. But, gradually, simple respect 
was converted mto religious adoration; the bodies and relics 
of the martyrs and confessors were taken from their peaceful 
and obs-^.ure places of rest, and solemnly enshrined in stately 
char<.iivis. where, by the devout, they were viewed with aw 
15* 



174 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

fill veneration, and to whose sanctity they were held largely 
to contribute. 

If such honors were paid to the mortal remains of tho 
champions for Christ, of how much greater were they them- 
selves to be held worthy ! It soon became an established ar- 
ticle of faith, that the apostles and other eminent saints were 
at once admitted to the beatific vision and immediate presence 
of God, where they enjoyed an extent of knowledge and a 
measure of power to which limits could not easily be set. 
The transition was easy to an invocation of them, to exert 
their own power for their suppliant, or intercede with God 
in his favor; and the worship of saints was speedily dissemi- 
nated through the Christian world. The bodies which the 
saints had occupied when on earth were supposed to retain 
or to have acquired a portion of this power : they too were 
adored ; and, shortly after, this honor was extended to their 
images. Each saint was held to be most easily propitiated at 
the place where his relics lay, or his life had been spent, and 
hence the origin of pilgrimages. 

In effect, the theory devised by Euhemerus, to account for 
tlie origin of Grecian polytheism, was exactly applicable to 
a great part of the religion now called Christianity ; and we 
shall have completed the picture when we add the number 
of pretended miracles that were every day asserted with the 
most unblushing assurance, and the quantity of Jewish and 
heathen ceremonies that was rapidly introduced into the 
church. 

This is the religion which will appear in the next twelve 
centuries of our history, and to which our future remarks 
will apply. We must, however, in justice add, that the tor- 
rent of corruption was nobly stemmed by some, such as 
Vigilantius ; that many of the corrupters knew not what they 
did ; and that much of the gold still remained among the 
dross. 



CHAP. X. 

DECLINE OF THE EMPIRE. 

Successors of Constantine. 

337 Constantine II. obtained Gaul and Britain : Constans Italy, 
Illyria, and Africa ; Constantius had the East. Their cousins, 
Dalmatius and Hannibalianus, had been made Ceesars by their 
uncle : the former governed Thrace, Macedonia, and Greece ; 
the latter, Armenia. 



CHAP. X. DECLINE OF THE EMPIRR 175 

The Cbfifartrs were murdered by their soldiers, not without 
the approb»/,^ion of the emperors, each of whom thirsted for 
absolute sw^y. Constantine attempted to deprive his brother 
of Italy, and lost his life in a battle against him near Aqui- a. d 
leia. Constant, a prince not devoid of talent, was devoted to 340 
and passed his days in the practice of unnatural lusts. Mag- 
nentius conspired against him, and he was surprised and slain 
in a wood at the foot of the Pyrenees, whither he was in the 350 
habit of retiring- with his favorites. Magnentius attempted 
to seize his dominions; but Illyria refused obedience, and 
made Vetranio, an old and worthy officer, emperor. 

Constantius, committing the war which he was waging, 
with little success, against Shahpoor, king of Persia, to his 
cousin Gallus, whom he had made Csesar, marched to the 
West. Vetranio cheerfully resigned his dignity for an annual 
pension. Italy declared for Constantius ; and Rome suffered 
a cruel vengeance from Magnentius, ere he marched to meet 
his rival. A series of bloody engagements ensued. On the 
plains of Hungary the last decisive one was fought, which re- 
united the empire under a single sceptre. Magnentius, to 
save them from disgrace, slew his own mother, and one of 
his brothers, and then himself; and his example was followed 
by his brother Decentius. The Csesar Gallus was executed 354 
shortly afterwards for some offences, by order of the emperor. 

Julian, the brother of Gallus, had been reared up at the 
cottrt of Constantius. His habits were studious, his senti- 
ments virtuous. Disgusted with what he saw around him, 
he sought relief in the contemplation of the noble characters 
of Greek and Roman story, whom he made his models. He 
carried his veneration for his loved antiquity so far as to re- 
nounce the Christian religion in which he had been reared, 
and secretly to embrace the ancient system of Greece and 
Rome, refined by the allegorizing subtilty of the school of 
tlie New Platonists ; and resolved to restore it to its former 
dignity, if ever the empire should fall to him. 

The Franks and Allemanni were now causing extreme un- 
easiness to Gaul, and the emperor was obliged to send thither, 
with the rank of CsBsar, his nephew, whom he held cheap as 
a book-learned dreamer. But Julian showed, as other men 
of mental power often have done, that study and learning 
disqualify not for action. He arranged the most judicious 
plan for conducting the war, and gave the Allemanni, whose 
troops under their chief Chnodomar were three times the 
number of his army, a most decisive defeat in the neighbor- 
hood of Strasburg. He marched all through their territory, 
reduced them and the Franks to sue for peace, and restored 



176 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART L 

the frontiers of the empire. He diminished the burdens of 
Gaul, and caused justice to be administered with speed and 
impartiality. His army saluted him Augustus; and Constan- 
tius, on receiving- the intelligence in Cilicia, died, it is said, 
of grief and mortification. 
^ J,; Julian, when seated on the throne, openly professed the 
3C1. ancient religion of the empire. The temples of the gods were 
again opened, the priests restored to their ancient dignity, 
and the zealous emperor sought to purify their morals. All 
practices and institutions to which Christianity appeared to 
him to have owed its success were engrafted on the old reli- 
gion : preachers were placed in the temples ; excommunica- 
tion employed against obstinate sinners ; large sums distributed 
in alms among the poor. An example of strict and rigid mor- 
als was set by the emperor ; the utmost moderation prevailed 
in the palace; the eunuchs and other ministers of luxury 
were removed. Favor in the distribution of employments 
was naturally shown to those who agreed in sentiment with 
the monarch ; but Julian, though superstitious, was too politic, 
if not too humane, to persecute the Christians. Toleration 
prevailed ; bishops who had been deposed from their sees were 
restored ; the cessation of mutual persecution for opinion en- 
joined ; Arians and Athanasians — for the dispute respecting 
the divine nature of Jesus Christ had split the church into 
these parties— compelled to live in peace. The politic em- 
peror hoped, perhaps, by division to weaken his opponents. 

From these cares Julian was called away to the defence of 
the eastern frontier against Shahpoor, who, probably aware 
of the growing disaffection of the Christians, had begun to 
make inroads. Julian marched to Mesopotamia, where, de- 
ceived by a pretended deserter, who undertook to lead him by 
a nearer road, he got into the deserts, where his army was 
exposed to the attacks of the light cavalry of the enemy. He 
resolved on giving battle ; but just as he was preparing for 
action, he was mortally wounded, and he died, encouraging 
his officers to do their duty. 
A. D On the death of Julian, the army invested with the purple 
363 Jovian, a Pannonian, a man of talent, and so zealous a Chris- 
tian, that he had thereby incurred the displeasure of the late 
emperor. He was compelled to surrender the strong fortress 
of Nisi bis to Shahpoor, as the condition of peace. Before he 
reached Constantinople, he diea. 
3o4 The army chose another Pannonian, Valentinian, to suc- 
ceed ; and he, with their assent, shared the dignity with his 
brother Valens, to whom he committed the care of the eastern 
part of the empire, himself taking charge of the West. Va- 




177 



CHAP. X. DECLINE OF THE EMPrRE. 179 

lentinian was a valiant prince ; and he distinguished himself 
in war against the Saxons, Allemanni, and Sarmatians, and 
built fortresses along the Rhine. Want of self-command was 
his great defect. Valens was of a less noble character, and 
he exercised great cruelty against those who set up claims to 
his empire, or diifered from his theological sentiments. 

The internal corruption and weakness of the empire still 
increased ; the court more and more every day approximated 
to the idle pomp, the secret influence of women and eunuchs, 
the inaccessibleness of the monarch, the horrid cruelty which 
distinguished those of the East. Barbarous punishments, such 
as Rome had hardly seen under the worst of her heathen 
monarchs, were inflicted by these emperors. The discipline 
of the legions continually relaxed ; their armor was lightened, 
the infantry diminished, and cavalry increased. The garrisons 
of frontier towns took to civil occupations. The best of the 
legions were composed of barbarians, who had been taken into 
the imperial pay. These often refused to fight against their 
own countrymen ; often betrayed the Romans ; mocked at all 
discipline; robbed and plundered the country; forced their 
emperors to give battle when it pleased them, how unfavora- 
ble soever the circumstances might be. When military virtue 
was lost, all was gone, for civil virtue had long since departed. 
The view given by contemporaries of the then state of the 
empire is heart-rending. Corruption, injustice, and oppres- 
sion, in the government and its officers; swarms of barbarians 
continually pouring in and devastating the provinces; and 
famine and pestilence to fill up the picture of misery. 

The Huns. 

A new enemy now appeared in Europe. Wars and com- 
motions in the distant East caused a tide of mingled Turks 
and Mongols to pour itself on the West, In the reign of 
Valens, the Romans heard of tribes of Mongol deformity, be- 
gotten, some reported, by the devil, who in countless swarms 
pressed on the eastern frontier of the Goths. This dreadful 
people was named the Huns. 

All the country from the Black Sea to Livonia was then 
ruled by the venerable Hermanric, chief of the Goths. He 
was shortly afterwards murdered. The Goths were divided 
into two great portions, the West-Goths (Visigoths,) governed 
by the house of t'.e Balti : the East-Goths (Ostrogoths,) by 
that of the Amali. The Huns rarely venturing to meet the 
West-Goths in battle, continually carried ofl^ their wives and 
children. In the confusion that ensued on the death of Her- 
manric, and the invasions of the Huns, the West-Gothic 



180 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

princes, Alavivus and Fridig-ern, proposed to the emperor Va- 
lens, that if he would give their nation lands south of the 
Danube, they would undertake the defence of that frontier. 
* Valens consented ; he gave the lands, and, throug-h Ulphilas, 
had them instructed in the Arian form of Christianity. During 
a period of fifty years the Huns pastured their herds, and pur- 
sued the chase, in the woods and plains of Russia, Poland, 
and Hungary, without molesting the West-Goths. The 
East-Goths were among their subjects ; but Safrach and Aleth 
led a portion of them over the Danube. 

Wars with the Goths. 

The Goths soon found themselves straitened for room in 
their new abode. They applied to the emperor for permission 
to trade. He gave orders to the neighboring governors to 
conduct it, which they did in such a spirit of monopoly, that 
the Goths had soon sold their cattle and slaves, and were re- 
duced to part with their children for food. The governors 
attempted treachery against Fridigern, the Gothic prince ; he 
summoned his countrymen to arms ; blood and devastation 
tracked the march of 'the Goths from Moesia towards Con- 
stantinople. The orthodox emperor of the West refused aid 
to the Arian Valens ; Terentius, governor of Armenia, did 
the same ; the imperial general, Trajan, was defeated ; the 
populace despaired of victory under an emperor who was the 
enemy of the Son of God. Meantime the Goths advanced ; 
the flames of the villages were seen from the walls of Con- 
stantinople. 

Valens marched and encountered the Goths in the plains 
of Adrianople. Cavalry now composed the main strength of 
the Roman armies. They could not stand against the firm 
Gothic infantry ; the imperial troops gave way and fled. Va- 
lens, wounded, sought refuge in a peasant's cottage, which 
^, D. was set fire to, along with the rest, by the pursumg Goths, 

378, and the emperor perished in the flames. 

The Goths approached the walls of Constantinople, and 
the empress Domnina prepared for a vigorous defence. Un- 
used to sieges, and daunted by the strength of the walls, they 
retired. Fridigern marched mto Greece, Safrach and Aleth 
turned baclf to ravage Pannonia. 
375. Valentinian was dead, and his sons, Gratian and Valentin- 
ian II., a child of four years, had succeeded him. Gratian 
associated in the empire Theodosius, a Spaniard by birth, a 
descendant of Trajan, whose virtues he emulated. The East 

379. was committed to the new emperor. His first efforts were to 
excite discord among tlie Goths, and to gain them over lo 



CHAP. X. DECLINE OF THE EMPIRE. 181 

himself. Fridigern shortly after died, and the emperor pro- 
posed a conference with his successor Athanaric: a peace 
was agreed on, a regular subsidy assigned the Goths, and a 
number of them taken into pay as auxiliaries. The Gothic 
chief died at Constantinople ; and such was the idea the Goths 
had conceived of the talents and virtues of the emperor, that 
they declared that so long as he lived they would not appoint 
another prince. 

Gratianus was an able and enlightened prince : he fought 
with valor and success against the Allemanni ; but his army 
disliked him, because he gave a preference to foreign troops. 
They set up Maximus against him, and Gratian was treache- a. d. 
rously murdered. 383 

Maximus drove the young Valentinian out of Italy. He 
secured the passes of the Alps, and posted himself with a 
large army near Aquileia ; but Theodosius took advantage of 
his neglect, and defeated him. Maximus fell in the action. 388. 

The two emperors now reigned undisturbed, till Valen- 
tinian was murdered by the Count Arbogastes and the secre- 
tary Eugenius. Theodosius speedily came to avenge him, 
and defeated his murderers at the foot of the Alps. 394. 

A few months after he had obtained the sole power, Theo- 395. 
dosius died, to the great misfortune and grief of the empire, 
which he had governed with justice, moderation, and pru- 
dence. He was the last who ruled over the whole Roman 
world. 

Theodosius had two sons : Arcadius, the elder, a youth of 
eighteen, was left the East ; and Rufinus, a native of Gaul, 
became his director : Honorius, a boy of eleven years, held 
the West, under the guardianship of Stilicho, a Vandal. 
These ministers, for private ends, introduced confusion into 
the empire. 

The Goths, on the death of Theodosius, had appointed 
Alaric, of the house of the Balti, their prince. Finding their 
subsidy ill paid, and perceiving that the justice and valor of 
Theodosius no longer swayed the sceptre, they meditated war. 
Rufinus deemed it a great stroke of policy to throw the evil 
on Italy. He secretly advised the Goths to turn their arms 
that way, promising to send no aid to that country. Stilicho, 
on the other hand, rejoiced at the prospect of war ; he took 
no pains to "secure the passes against Alaric, and a Gothic 
prince was surrounded and slain in the mountains near Fie- 
sole. 

T he nation of the West-Goths, with wives and children, 403 
flocks and herds, broke up from their seats in McBsia and 
Hither-Dacia, and advanced through Illyrium, Istria, and the 
16 



182 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

north-east of Italy, without meeting any opposition. Tljey 
arrived within a few miles of Milan, at that time the impe- 
rial residence, and sent a message to inform the emperor that 
the West-Gothic nation was arrived in Italy, and prayed him 
either to assign them land, or to try the strength of the two 
nations in the field. Honorius replied, that they might take 
land in either Gaul or Spain. Alaric accepted the permission, 
though in the one country he might have to contend with the 
Franks, in the other with the Vandals and Suevians. With- 
out committing any act of violence, he marched towards the 
Alps leading into Gaul, and the Goths celebrated Easter in 
the mountains of Piedmont. In the midst of the festival, they 
were astonished to see that they were followed by a Roman 
army. The Goths were attacked and defeated by the assail- 
ants, and Alaric, filled with rage, turned back on Italy. 

He ravaged Liguria and all the country to Tuscany, and 
hastened towards Rome. Her fate was averted for a season ; 
but on th«=^ 26th August, of the year 1164 from the supposed 
era of her foundation, Rome surrendered for the first time to 

4 u a foreign e»iemy, and saw herself at the mercy of Alaric. 

409. The imperial palace and the houses of the great were plun- 
dered ; much blood was spilt, and many houses fired. He 
bestowed the purple on one Attalus, then stripped him of it, 
marched southwards, and subdued Campania and Calabria, as 
far as the strait. He was meditating, it is said, a passage to 
Sicily and Africa, and the conquest of that country, when 
death surprised him at Cosenzo in his 35th year. The whole 
West-Gothic nation mourned for him, and the neighboring 
river was diverted from its course to afford a grave for the 
Gothic monarch in its bed, and then turned back to its usual 
channel, that the tomb of Alaric might never be discovered. 
His brother-in-law, Adolf, (Athaulf) was chosen to succeed 
him. 

Adolf marched back to Rome, where his troops did great 
injury to the public buildings and works of art. The empe- 
ror was forced to give him his sister in marriage. He con- 
tinued his march to Gaul. All opposition gave way before 

410 Gothic valor. The country bounded by the Rhone, Loire, and 
Pyrenees, submitted to the West-Goths, and Toloza (Toulouse) 
became their capital. They crossed the Pyrenees, and drove 
the Vandals, Suevians, and the Slavonian Alans to the moun- 
tains of Gallicia and Portugal. The Spaniards retained their 
ancient valor ; but the government of the empire was not so 
beneficial as to deserve to be defended. This kingdom of the 
West-Goths in Spain lasted till the year 711. 

The Caledonians meantime pressed upon Britain ; Phara- 
mond ( Warmund) and his Franks had settled in the Nether 




Wlckliffe. 



183 



CHAP. X. DECLINE OF THE EMPIRE. Ig5 

lands ; Gundicher (Giinther) and his Burgundians, seized the 
country on the Upper Rhine. His capital was Worms. Heruli 
and Rusfians came down into Noricum (Austria ;) the Lango- 
bards took Pannonia (Hungary and a part of Austria ;) the 
East-Goths, a part of Thrace. Sebastian and Jovinus raised 
the standard of rebellion in the empire. Heraclianus, g-ov- 
ernor of Africa, kept back the corn-ships destined for Rome. 
In this state of the public affairs Honorius died, leaving the ^^ ^ 
throne of the West to his nephew Valentinian, a child of six 423. 
years of age. 

Genseric and Attila. 

In the reign of Valentinian III. Africa was lost to the 
western empire; the cause was the ambition and art of 
iEtius, the imperial general. Galla Placidia, the mother of 
the young emperor, governed for him with wisdom. Boni- 
facius was governor of Africa. JEtius wished to cause en- 
mity between him and the regent. He wrote to Bonifacius, 
telling him he had been traduced to her, and that she would re- 
call him and put him to death ; he represented to Placidia that 
Bonifacius was meditating rebellion, and that the only way 
to check was to recall him : she did so ; he refused obedience : 
it was resolved to make war on him. Bonifacius, diffident of 
his own resources, cast his eyes on the Vandals, now masters 
of Andalusia : he offered land on the coast of Africa, as the 
price of their assistance, to their princes Genseric and Gon- 
deric. Genseric, an able, enterprising, and ambitious youth, 
immediately crossed the strait. Terror and devastation tracked 427 
his route. Bonifacius perceived his error : aided by some forces 
sent by Theodosius II. emperor of the East, he armed in de- 
fence of the country. Genseric defeated both him and the im- 
perial general Aspar. He took Carthage, plundered it, de- 
stroyed the nobility, and tortured all ranks to make tliem 
discover their treasures. Being an Arian, he relentlessly 
oersecuted the orthodox. 

His son Hunneric was married to a West-Gothic princess. 
As Genseric grew old, he became suspicious : he took it into 
nis head that his daughter-in-law meditated poisoning him, 
and he cut off her nose and ears, and sent her home to her 
own country. Then, fearing the vengeance of the West- 
Goths, and a union between them and the Roman emperor 
igainst him, he sent amjjassadors to Attila, king of the Huns, 
to induce him to invade the western empire. 

The whole nation of the Huns was united under this aoie 

Prince. He ruled from the Volga to Hungary; Gepidse, 
iangobards, East-Goths, and nations of southern Germany 
obeyed him ; the emperor Theodosius paid him tribute 
13* 



». 



186 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I. 

700,000 warriors marched beneath his banners, each Hun^iisn 
tribe under its chief. One soul animated the whole ; all 
yielded implicit obedience to the mandate of their great 
Tanjoo, Attila was generous, and not averse from mercy. 

Attila resolved on war. He prepared the way by ai tifico ; 
he wrote to Theoderic (Dietrich,) the West-Gothic king re- 
siding at Toulouse, inviting him to unite in a partition of the 
empire of the Romans, his sworn foes. He wrote to the im- 
perial court, exaggerating the fidelity of the Huns, and pro- 
posing to restore the integrity of the empire by a union of 
their forces to expel the West-Goths from Gaul and Spain. 
The imperial court saw through the artifice. Valentinian 
called on all the barbaric monarchs of the West to join in 
averting the common danger : his call was attended to. The 
valiant West-Gothic monarch, the Burgundians who dwelt in 
the modern Burgundy, Dauphine, Savoy, and West Switzer- 
land, Sangiban, king of the Alans, on the Loire, the towns 
of Armorica, the community of Paris, the Ripuarian Franks 
between the Maese and Rhine, the Salian Franks ruled by 
Mcroveus, and the Saxons beyond the Rhine, all took arms 
to repel the Huns. 

From his village-court on the banks of the Theiss, Attila 
pursued his march through Austria, Styria, the borders of 
Rhsetia and Allemannia, passed the Rhine, defeated at Basil 
the king of the Burgundians, rapidly advancing, till on the 
Marne in the plains of Croisette, not far from Chalons, he en- 
countered the army of the confederates. 
4. D The left wing of the confederates was commanded by 
450, iEtius, the Roman general, the right by Theoderic, the centre 
by king Sangiban. One wing of the army of AttUa was led 
by the king of the Gepidse, the other by the princes of the 
East-Goths. Attila ordered the principal efforts to be directed 
against the West-Goths and Alans, and desired all to fix their 
eyes on him. The fight was long and bloody. Theoderic 
fell, encouraging his men. At the approach of night, Attila 
found it necessary to retreat. The West-Goths burned to 
avenge the death of their king. ^Etius judged it more politic 
to reserve the Huns as a counterpoise to them: he also 
wished to prolong the war, and his own command. Attila, as 
the country was unable to support his troops, returned home. 
452. Vengeance, or, as is said, the invitation of a sister of the 
emperor, who offered him her han^ drew Attila to Italy. 
Aquileia resisted in vain : it was levelled to the ground ; its 
male inhabitants put to the sword, the women and children 
led into slavery. All the towns of northern Italy were taken 
and plundered. He entered Ravenna through a breach made 
by the citizens in their walls, to testify their submission. Leo 



SHAP. X. DECLINE OF THE EMPIRE. .187 

the vene-able bishop of Rome, came to meet him, bearing' 
gifts, and accompanied by nobles. He besought him to spare 
the city where the apostle had preached, and which Alaric 
had not violated. Attila was moved : he drew off his army, 
laden with spoil, to pasture their herds once more beyond the 
Danube. Dreaded by the East and West, Attila died soon a. d 
afler, on the night of his marriage with the fair Hildichunde, 463 
and with him expired the power of the Huns. 

Fall of the Western Empire. 

Valentinian HI. was a luxurious and superstitious prince. 
He had violated the wife of Maximus, a noble Roman. Bent 
on vengeance, Maximus, to deprive the emperor of support, 
contrived to make him put the brave ^tius to death. This 
incensed the guards, whose prefect ^tius had been, and 
Valentinian was murdered by them. Maximus was made 45& 
emperor, and he married Eudoxia, the widow of his predeces- 
sor. In a moment of unguarded confidence he revealed to 
her the secret of his being the chief agent in the death of 
Valentinian. Eudoxia, who had loved the husband of her 
youth, resolved to avenge him. She wrote to Africa to Gen- 
seric, calling upon him to avenge the murder of him, who 
had so many years left him in undisturbed possession of the 
fertile regions of Africa. Genseric obeyed the summons. 
On intelligence of his approach, all the principal citizens of 
Rome fled to the Sabine and Tuscan mountains. Maximus 
was put to death by the people. No resistance was offered 
to the Vandals. Fourteen days they abode in Rome, which 
Leo, its bishop, with difficulty saved from conflagration. The 
empress and her daughters, the flower of the youth, the 
artists and mechanics, were brought to Africa. The works 
of art were embarked for the same place, but were lost on 
the passage. All the south of Italy was wasted by the 
Vandals. 

Avitus, a man of noble descent and virtuous life, was ele- 456. 
vated to the purple in Gaul, but almost immediately laid 
down his dignity. The Romans then chose Majorianus, a 457 
brave warrior. He marched against the Alans, who were 
threatening a descent into Italy, but was murdered by his own 461. 
soldiers. His successor was Severus. The Alans, who were a 
tribe of Slavonian race, had settled on the Loire in Gaul. 
Finding themselves straitened between the Franks and the 
West-Goths, they abandoned that country, passed the Alps, and 
reached Bergamo. Here they were defeated by the imperial 
general, Richimir, who shortly afterwards deposed the em- 
peror, and raised his own father-in-law, Anthemius, to the 467 



188 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART I 

throne. He designed to govern under the name of the em 
peror. Anthemius was refractory : a battle was fought near 
Rome. Richimir was victorious ; he put Anthemius to death, 
wasted and plundered the city in a dreadful manner, and sur- 
i. D. vived but forty days. Olybrius, married to a daughter of 
473. Valentinian, was raised to the throne, which he occupied but 
seven months. Glycerins, a lord of the court, was chosen by 
the Romans ; but the Eastern emperor set up Julius Nepoa 
474 against him, and Glycerius retired and took orders, and be- 
came bishop of Porto. 

The emperor sent his general, Orestes, to defend the pas- 
sage of the Alps against the barbarians, who were continually 
advancing. By means of his army Orestes forced him to re- 
sign, and he invested with the purple his own son, Romulus 

475. Augustus, a youth of amiable manners and cultivated mind. 

The Heruli, a people whom we first find seated in Pome- 
rania, on the shores of the Baltic, had gradually proceeded 
southwards. They fed their herds in Pannonia, then roved 
into Noricam, and now appeared in Italy, with other tribes, 
headed by the valiant Odoacer. Pavia, defended by the father 
of the young emperor, resisted. It was taken, and Orestes 
beheaded. All the cities opened their gates at the approach 
^ of Odoacer. Romulus laid down sceptre, purple, and crown, 
and entered the camp of the Herulian chief His life was 
spared, and he was sent to a castle in Campania. 

476. Thus, in the days of a prince of the same name as her 
supposed founder, in the 1229th year of the city, fell the 
empire of Rome. She had by valor and prudence risen from 
the smallest beginnings ; had step by step enlarged her do- 
minions, absorbed one after another all the nations of the 
civilized world that surrounded the Mediterranean, had 
adopted their vices, had lost her strength by internal corrup- 
tion. The mighty colossus had long tottered on its base; each 
tribe of the Gotho-German stock had by turns agitated it : 
the last and decisive effort was reserved for the dwellers of 
Rligen and Pomerania, a tribe unheard of in her days of 
glory. 

We here quit the ancient world. New scenes open, new 
manners appear ; the gods of Greece and Rome have vanish- 
ed : a different religion is dominant, before which anothei 
ancient system also gives way ; while the wilds of Arabia 
send forth another religion, which, in its rapidity of diffusion 
and extent of dominion, will vie with that which emanated 
from its vicinity six centuries before. We shall meet limited 
monarchy the prevalent form of government ; view the amaz- 
' ing fabric of ecclesiastical dominion ; and contemplate feu* 
dalism, with its chivalry and its martial spirit. 




Francis I. 



189 



HISTORY OF THE WORLD, 



PART II. 

THE MIDDLE AGES. 

CHAP. I. 

KSTAilLISHMENT OF THE BARBARIANS IN THE WESTERN EMPIRE. 

Introduction. 

Hitherto the stream of history has run in one nearly 
continuous channel, varying its appellation as the chief power 
fell into the hands of a different people. Assyrians, Medes, 
and Persians, have succeeded each other in the possession 
of Asiatic empire. Greece has risen on their ruins ; and all 
have been finally absorbed in the wide dominion of Rome. 
The minor streams of smaller states have only contributed 
to swell the current of empire. The face of history now 
alters ; the last great empire is dissolved ; no state will ap- 
pear of such magnitude as to absorb all others ; numerous 
states will run a parallel course, mutually affecting each 
other. Our plan must suit itself to the altered condition of 
the world : henceforth we shall divide the course of events 
into periods, under each of which we shall view the then 
state of human affairs. 

The middle ages occupy ten centuries of the history of 
man. Of these, the six first are justly denominated the dark 
ages. A long night succeeded to the brilliant day of Rome; 
whose sun had set in blood and gloom. In the four last cen- 
turies of this period, it will brighten more and more into the 
perfect day of modern cultivation and refinement. Religion 
will purify, law will resume its empire, manners will soften^ 
literature and science will revive. 

The Gotho- Germans. 

The tribes that overturned the western empire were all 
of this great race, which overspread nearly all the northern 
part of Europe. Their original seat was probably east of the 
(Caspian. The affinity between their languages and those of 

191 



192 



HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT. 



India and Persia is striking; but the date of their miration 
is anterior to occidental history. They were distinguished 
by their huge stature, blue eyes, and fair complexions. Their 
religious system was a deification of the powers of na;:ure ; it 
still subsists in the Icelandic Eddas. 

We shall now give a concise view of the states founded by 
them on the ruins of the empire of Rome. 

East- Goths in Italy. 

On the death of Attila, the East-Goths threw off their sub- 
jection to the Huns. Under their princes of the house of 
the Amali, they dwelt from the Danube to the Save. They 
received gifts from the Eastern emperors ; they gave hostages 
in return. Among these was Theoderic (Dietrich), a natural 
son of their king Theodemir, a youth of talent and hope. 
Theodemir extended his conquests to the Alps. His son re- 
turned at the age of eighteen, accomplished in the knowledge 
of the Romans, and, unknown to his father, defeated a Sar- 
matian prince. The Goths now extended into Illyria and 
Macedonia, and Theoderic succeeded his father. The em- 
peror Zeno, a weak prince, feared the ruler of the Goths: he 
invested him with the consular robe, and allowed him to tri- ■ 
umph. But the Goths still felt themselves straitened ; and 
Zeno adopted the resolution of formally bestowing on Theo- 
deric Italy, now bowed beneath the sceptre of the king of the 
Heruli. 

The Gothic nation, accompanied by their families, flocks, 
and herds, joyfully set forth under their prince, of twenty- 
four years of age, to take possession of the blooming region 
assigned them. Twice on the borders of Italy were the sub- 
jects of Odoacer defeated. The Gothic warriors marched 
through the future Venetian territory. Odoacer fled to 
Rome, but found its gates closed against him.. He shut him- 
self up in Ravenna, defended by its morasses, works, and 
20,000 men. In the third year of the siege, Odoacer was mur- 
jj dered, and tlie city surrendered. Theoderic forthwith assum- 
493, ed the Roman purple. 

At Rome, where he was received with every demonstration 
of honor, he sought to restore every thing to its state under 
the emperors. He governed with justice : though an Arian, 
he persecuted not the orthodox, but testified all becoming 
respect for their bishops. Though so illiterate as not to 
write, he encouraged learning: his chancellor was the learn- 
ed Cassiodorus; the philosophic Boethius was one of his min- 
isters. Allied to most of the barbaric princes, he was a father 
and mediator among them. His wife was daughter to Childe- 



CHAP. I. BARBARIANS IN THE WESTERN EMPIRE. 193 

bert, king of the Franks ; his sister was married to Hunneric, 
king of the Vandals ; his niece, to the king of the Thurin- 
gians; his daughters to the monarchs of the Burgundians 
and West-Goths. Theoderic left no son. When he felt the 
approach of death, he summoned his nobles and officers, com- 
mended to them his daughter Amalaswinde, and her son 
Athalaric, a child of ten years ; advised regard to order, and a. Dt 
to the senate and people of Rome, and the maintenance of 32S. 
peace with the Eastern empire. 

The ambition of the mother of Athalaric induced her to 
associate with her in the regency her cousin Theudat. Her 
eon died of disease, and her ungrateful colleague deprived 534 
her of life. 

Meantime the Vandal kingdom in Africa had fallen beneath 
the arms of Belisarius, the able general of the emperor Justi- 
nian, and Gelimir, its last sovereign, had been led in triumph 
in Constantinople. Orders were now issued to Belisarius to 
avenge the daughter of Theoderic. Theudat was dethroned 536. 
by the Gothic nation, and Vitig seated on the throne of the 
Amali. Belisarius denied the right of the Goths to elect a 
king over a country originally Roman. From Sicily, which 
had already submitted, he passed over to Italy, took Naples, 
then Rome, which he fortified ; advanced into Tuscany, and 
defeated the Goths at Perusia. Milan and the neighboring 
towns rebelled against the Arian Goths; and Vitig called 
from Burgundy, now under the Franks, 10,000 volunteers 538 
against them. The defence of Milan was long and obstinate ; 
the inhabitants endured the extremities of famine; but at 
length the Frankish arms were successful, and neither age 
nor sex was spared in the carnago. Vitig lay fourteen months 
before Rome, which was relieved by Belisarius; Ravenna 
was taken, and Vitig led a captive to Constantinople. 539 

The Franks fought in Italy with the success which has 
always attended their arms in that country — victory, then 
defeat. The Goths were still animated by their usual heroism : 
two kings were elected and dethroned. In the person of 540 
Totila, the third monarch, the fame of Theoderic revived. 
Victory attended his arras ; he took the towns, and levelled 
their walls. Belisarius was absent quelling an insurrection 
in Africa : he returned to see Rome taken before his eyes. 
Her fortifications were destroyed ; her inhabitants of all ranks 
driven from their homes, that she might never again be able 
to resist the Gothic arms. Master of Italy, Totila now emu- 
lated the mildness of Theoderic ; he recalled her population 
to Rome, and lived as a father among his people. 

Court intrigue had recalled Belisarius ; the conduct of the 

17 



194 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART 11. 

Italian war was committed to the valiant eunuch Narses. 
With the title of proconsul, and with Langobardic auxilia- 
4. jy ries, he entered Italy. The Goths were defeated near Tajina, 
562. and Totila slain. The nobles of the nation raised Teias to 
the throne in Pavia; but Nocera soon beheld his end, and 
that of the Gothic dominion. A feeble attempt on Italy was 
made by the Allemanni, now subject to the Frank?. 

Under the admmistration of Narses, Italy enjoyed abun- 
Jance, tranquillity, and happiness. Rome, too, gradually rose 
again. But Narses fell under the displeasure of the emperor 
Justin II. He left Rome and retired to Naples, whence he 
568. sent letters inviting- Alboin (Albwin), king of the Lombards, 
to the invasion of Italy. 

The Lombards in Italy. 

The Longobards or Lombards had occupied the abandonea 
seats of the East-Goths in Pannonia. Alboin had lately con- 
quered the Gepidse, a kindred tribe, drunk from the skull of 
their king Kunimund, and married his daughter, Rosamund, 
when he received the invitation of Narses. On the 22d 
April, 568, the whole nation of the Lombards, with 20,000 
Saxon confederates, abandoned Pannonia. On a lovely morn- 
ing of Spring, they with rapture first beheld, from the summit 
of the Alps, the magnificent region which was to become 
their own. Their march through the country was orderly 
and peaceful ; no plunder or devastation took place ; nothing 
was omitted to conciliate the affections of the inhabitants. 
Pavia fell before their arms, and became their capital. In a 
short time no part of Italy remained to the empire but Ra- 
venna, Rome, and some of the eastern sea.-coast. This prov- 
ince was governed by exarchs or proconsuls. The authority 
of the emperors gradually diminished in Rome, and was trans- 
ferred to the popes, of whom the virtues of many rendered 
them worthy of the authority they enjoyed ; and Rome might 
justly esteem herself happy, when directed by the meekness, 
piety, and zeal of her more distinguished pontic. 

The Burgundians. 

Bordering on the Lombards were the Burgundians, who 
possessed the ancient country of the Allobroges. On entering 
this country the Burgundians had required of the former pos- 
sessors to give up to them two-thirds of the lands, one-half of 
the woods, houses, and gardens, and one-third of the slaves. 
Agriculture and pasturage were the occupation of the free 
Burgundians ; the arts were exercised by the servile classes 
They were one of the first of the barbarian nations to form a 



CHAP. I. BARBARIANS IN THE WESTERN EMPIRE. 195 

code of laws ; and the Burg-undian code is distinguished from 
that of the other nations, by not allowing' a composition for 
blood. When they entered Gaul, they had themselves in- 
Btructed, during seven days, in the principles of Christianity ; 
•m the eighth they were baptized. 

The princes of the Burgundians sought and obtained fronj 
the court of Constantinople the Patriciate or government over 
the original inhabitants : their office and their large posses- 
sions assured them authority over their own countrymen. A 
powerful nobility controlled their authority. Gondebald, one 
of their sovereigns, attempted to raise his Roman subjects to 
an equality with the Burgundians, to diminish their influence; 
but all ranks of the latter assembled at Geneva, and forced 
him to abandon his project. 

To secure the crown to his son Sigraund, his father, Gon- 
debald, had him, during his own lifetime, elevated, after their a. y 
ancient manner, on the shields of the Burgundians, and pro- 515 
cured for him the patriciate from the emperor. Sigmund was 
married to the daughter of the great Theoderic, the East- 
Goth. After her death, he sacrificed her son to the calumnies 
of his second wife. Theoderic sent troops to avenge his 
grandson, and he roused the sons of Clovis (Chlodvig) the 
Frank to gratify the vengeance of Clotilda, their mother, 
whose father had been put to death by his brother Gondebald, 
the father of Sigmund. The Franks entered the country : 
Sigraund fled to a convent he had founded; he was taken 
and slain. His brother Gondemar and the nation carried on 
the struggle during ten years. At last Gondemar was over- 
come, and the race of Clovis ruled over Burgundy. The 534 s 
national independence, the laws, and manners stUl remained. / 

The Allemanni, / 

Northwards of the Burgundians, the Allemanni had estab- ' 
lished themselves along both sides of the Rhine, from its 
source to its confluence with the Moselle and Maine. They 
neglected the arts of civil life ; their herds occupied and sus- 
tained them : they loved the agitation of war, and their rude 
policy caused them to demolish the walls of conquered towns. 

Cologne, the territory of the Ripuarian Franks, having 496 
been invaded by them, Clovis, the Salian, marched to the aid 
of his allies. He met the Allemanni near Ziilpich. A long 
and desperate battle ensued ; victory was declaring for the 
Allemanni, when Clovis, still a heathen, raised his hands to 
heaven, and invoked the God of the Christians. His Roman 
soldiers were stimulated to increased exertion ; they threw 
themselves impetuously on the foe. The Allemanni were 



/ 



196 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

broken, their king was slain, and the people submitted to the 
rule of the king of the Franks. 

The Franks. 

In the third century, the warlike association of the Franks, 
seated on the marshy confines of the Lower Rhine, began to 
overrun Gaul. They had been gradually acquiring a firm 
footing in that country. They were divided into several tribes, 
governed by different chiefs of the family of Meroveus. Clovis 
(Chlodvig) son of Chilperic, succeeded, at the age of fifteen, 
to the command of the Salian tribe. Ambitious of conquest, 
he led his warriors from his little kingdom of the Batavian 
island into Gaul. Numerous auxiliaries crowded to a stand- 
ard which held forth the prospect of conquest and plunder. 
Clovis, with rigid impartiality, divided the booty of each vic- 
^, p tory among his followers ; but indiscriminate plunder was se- 
486 verely prohibited and punished. Syagrius, who ruled as king 
over Soissons and the neighboring country, and whose equity 
and justice had gained him a mild and beneficial influence 
over the Burgundians and Franks, was the first potentate at- 
tacked by the Frankish chief A battle decided the fate of 
Syagrius, who fled to the court of Toulouse, where his life 
was sacrificed to the menaces of Clovis. The district of 
Tongres was the next acquisition of Clovis, made in the tenth 
year of his reign. The battle of Ziilpich, just narrated, gave 
him the sovereignty over the Allemanni. His queen, Clo- 
tilda, Vv^as a Burgundian princess, and a Christian : her en- 
treaties, the victory at Ziilpich, or politic views, perhaps a 
union of all these motives, led Clovis to yield a willing ear 
to the arguments of the Christian bishops, and he was fol 
lowed to the font by 3000 of his warriors. 

The form of Christianity embraced by Clovis, was the Cath- 
olic. Nothing could have been more advantageous to him, 
at least in a temporal point of view. The West-Goth and 
Burgundian princes were Arians ; and though they treated 
their Catholic clergy and subjects with the utmost gentleness, 
the latter could not endure patiently the dominion of here- 
tics. A large portion of their subjects, therefore, looked up 
to the orthodox king of the Franks, and were ready to aid his 
enterprises against their Arian sovereigns. Alaric, king of 
the West-Goths, was young; his subjects had for many years 
enjoyed the luxury of peace; his realms were fair and fruit- 
ful; he and his Goths were Arian sectaries. In an assembly 
of his nobles and warriors at Paris, now the seat of his gov- 
ernment, Clovis expressed his grief, that the fairest part of 
Gaul should be in the hands of Arians, and invited his war- 




17 



197 



CHAP. I. BARBARIANS IN THE WESTERN EMPIRE. 199 

riors to join in the conquest and division of it. Such motives 
were not to be resisted ; a numerous army soon took the field. 
Alaric roused his Goths to arms : his troops outnumbered the 
Franks; but the influence and the arts of the clergy were 
with Clovis. Miracles, it was even said, came in aid of the 
righteous cause. The river of Vienne was swollen ; but a 
white hart appeared to conduct the Catholic army to a ford. 
A bright meteor hung each night over the cathedral of Poi- 
tiers ; and its flame,, like the pillar in the wilderness, served 
to guide the true believers towards the station of the infi- 
dels. Ten miles beyond that city the armies encountered. 
Alaric fell by the hand of his rival, and the rout of the Goths 
was complete. The whole of Aquitain was conquered and 
colonized by the Franks, and the Gothic dominions in Gaul 
reduced to the province of Septimania, a strip extending 
along the Mediterranean. The emperor of the East conferred 
on Clovis the dignity of consul and patrician; titles of no in- 
trinsic value, but which gave him estimation in the eyes of 
his Gallic subjects. a. d 

On the death of Clovis, his extensive dominions were di- 511 
vided among his four sons. Thierry (Dietrich) had Austrasia, 
the eastern portion, embracing a great part of western Ger- 
many : his capital was Metz. Clodomir resided at Orleans ; 
Childibert, at Paris; Clotaire, at Soissons. These princes 
reduced Burgundy, in the conquest of which Clodomir fell. 
The dominions of Clovis had again a single master, in the 
person of Clotaire, his youngest son by Clotilda. The valor 558 
of Thierry, the eldest, had added Thuringia to his domin- 
ions. The empire was again divided, and again reunited, in 
the person of another Clotaire, great-grandson of Clovis. His 
son, Dagobert I., was an able prince ; but after him the sove- 613 
reigns of the Merovingian house became utterly insignificant. 
Their dominions were divided into two portions, Austrasia 
and Neustria ; the latter containing the former kingdoms of 
Paris, Orleans, and Soissons. Burgundy was dependent on . 
Neustria ; but Aquitain was separated from the time of Dago- 
bert, and governed by dukes descended from his brother Ari- 
bert. Officers, called Mayors of the Palace, whose original 
employment had been the presentation of petitions, gradually 
usurped all power, and eventually the throne. 

The Anglo-Saxons. 

On the decline of the empire, the Roman legions were 
withdrawn from Britain. The inhabitants, enervated by civili- 
zation and a long peace, were assailed by the Picts and Scots, 
and their coasts were infested by the incursions of the tribes 



200 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II 

of the north. Vortigern, who at that time enjoyed the su 
premacy over the Britons, deemed it the wisest policy to gain 
the alliance of some of these last, and he engfaged Heng-ist 
A. D. and Horsa, two Saxon chiefs, who were sailing with three 
449. ships along the coast, to enter his service. With their aid 
the Caledonians were reduced to peace. The isle of Thanet 
was assigned to these useful allies. A large body of Saxons 
sailed from Germany and joined them in that place. The 
Saxon chiefs then persuaded the British king to invite over 
more of their countrymen, and plant them in the north. He 
assented, and a third fleet sailed from Germany. Peace did 
not long continue between Vortigern and his allies. Saxons, 
Jutes, Angles, poured over in vast numbers : adventurers from 
all parts joined them. A long and bloody contest ended in 
giving the Saxons possession of all the plain country of Brit- 
ain : the original natives could only maintain themselves in 
Cornwall, Wales, and the district along the western coast, in 
the north : a portion passed over to Armorica, and gave that 
country its present name — Bretagne. In the conquered dis- 
tricts, the original natives were reduced to a state of thral- 
582. dom, and nearly exterminated. 

Their conquests were divided by the Saxons into a num- 
ber of separate and independent kingdoms. The greatest 
number at any time was eight ; but conquest, inheritance, or 
other causes, frequently reduced them lo seven, six, five, four, 
three, which were again dissolved, and the number increased. 
The usual train of murders, usurpations, tyranny, and op- 
pression that accompanied the various lines of barbarian 
princes settled in the Roman empire, distinguished the Anglo- 
Saxon monarchies ; but, with their barbarism and their vices, 
they retained their freedom, and the germs of those institu- 
tions of which England is now so justly proud. 

The West-Goths in Spain. 

The nature of the country has always favored the defence 
of Spain. Its conquest engaged the Roman legions during 
171 years ; and the same period elapsed from the arrival of 
H 1 the Gothic king Adolph in Catalonia, before the last king of 
the Suevi in that country was taken, and the whole peninsula 
submitted to the Gothic rule. 

The history of the Gothic monarchs in Spain is a tissue of 
murders, usurpations, and all the evils attending elective 
monarchy among an uncivilized people. In 117 years, Leu- 
vigild, the first monarch of all Spain, had seventeen succes-. 
sors. When the monarchs embraced the Catholic faith, the 
influence of the clergy greatly increased; and though the ar 



CHAP. I. BARBARIANS IN THE WESTERN EMPIRE. 201 

dent zeal of the prelates, in their numerous councils, incul- 
cated persecution, many laws beneficial to the people in gen- 
eral were enacted in them ; and the Visigoth code breathes a 
more enlightened policy than those of the other states founded 
on the ruins of Rome. 

During a great part of this period the coast of Spain was 
under the dominion of the Byzantine emperors, who encour- 
aged the disaffection of the orthodox subjects of the Arian 
Goths. When Recared, one of these monarchs, embraced 
the Catholic faith, the pretext for refusing allegiance was re- 
moved, and the Gothic monarchy had only its own internal 
weakness to dread. 

The Byzantine Empire. 

The eastern or Byzantine empire, so called from the an- 
cient name of its capital, continued to exist to the end of the 
middle ages ; but greatly declined from the rank of the Roman 
empire, and now only one among many of equal power and 
dignity. Through the early part of tliis period it possessed • 
nearly all that was apportioned to it by Theodosius ; and, in 
the reign of Justinian, Africa, the greater part of Italy, and 
the coast of Spain, were annexed to it. Its external enemies 
were the Persians, the Huns, and other tribes on its northern 
frontiers ; internally it was agitated by the contention of reli- 
gious parties, for which a remedy was vainly sought in the 
assembling of general councils of the prelates to settle by 
their votes what was incapable of being determined; and the 
conduct and character of the majority of those who met in 
fiolemn assembly at Ephesus, Chalcedon, and Constantinople, 
to decide on the nature of the Son of God, showed how small 
a portion of his spirit was abiding among them. The city of 
Constantinople was continually thrown into disorder by the 
furious contentions and mutual massacres of the blue and 
green factions of the Hippodrome, and their respective parti- 
sans and favorites. 

Arcadius, the son of Theodosius, was a weak, insignificant a. d 
prince, entirely governed by his empress and his faithless 395. 
minister Ruffinus. His son, Theodosius II., partook of his 408. 
father's weakness of character; and eunuchs and monks ex- 
ercised unlimited power over his mind. The powerful Attila 
threatened the throne of Byzantium, and the feeble successor 
»f Constantine trembled and paid tribute ; but his father had 
»iad the good sense and magnanimity to commend his tender 
youth to the regard and protection of Yezdejird, the able 
monarch of Persia, the enlightened tolerator of Christianity ; 
and during his reign the empire was unmolested on that side. 



202 HISTOllY OF THE WORLD. PART 11. 

The hours of Theodosius were devoted to study, to the chase, 
and to the occupations of his court ; and he has the honor of 
being the first monarch who caused a collection of the laws 
of the empire to be made. The repose of his latter days was 
disturbed by the first council of E-phesus; wherein the turbu- 
lent Cyril of Alexandria, by violence and cruelty, settled the 
disputed question of the nature of the meek and lowly Jesus, 
in opposition to his rival, the less fortunate, but perhaps more 

A. D pious, Nestorius, of Constantinople. 

450. Pulcheria, the wise and talented sister of Theodosius, suc- 
ceeded. Feeling- the necessity of masculine energy at the 
helm of the state, she gave her hand to Marcian, a senator, 
who had in early life distinguished himself in the Persian 
and other wars. With true Roman spirit, Marcian refused to 
continue the tribute of his feeble predecessor to the king of 
the Huns. Attila stormed and vowed vengeance; but his 
attention being at that time drawn towards the West, he con- 
fined himself to threats against the Byzantine monarch. 

iSTi On the death of Marcian the throne was filled by Leo, a 
prince not unworthy of it; but he stained his fame by his in- 
gratitude to Aspar, to whom he owed his elevation. His in- 
fant grandson succeeded, whose father, an Isaurian by birth, 
but who had taken the Grecian name of Zeno, governed in 
his stead. The infant emperor dying prematurely, suspicion 
fell on his father ; and Verina, the widow of Leo, drove him 
from his throne, which she bestowed on her brothei Basilicus. 
But this prince, having ofiended his sister, a conspiracy de- 
livered him and his family into the power of the relentless 

491- Zeno, who recovered his throne. On the death of Zeno, his 
widow, the virtuous Ariadne, bestowed her hand and the em- 
pire upon x\nastatius, a domestic of the palace, whoso charac- 
ter is expressed by the popular cry at his accession : " Reign 
as you have lived !" 

After a reign of twenty-seven years, Anastatius diefl, leav- 
ing no heirs. The eunuch Amantius determined to give the 
purple to some one in whose obsequiousness he might confide. 
To assure his measures, he intrusted a large sura of money, 
to be distributed by way of donative among the guards, to 
Justin their commander, originally a Dacian peasant. Justin 
was false to his trust : he gained the suffrages of the soldiers 

518. for himself; and the illiterate peasant was seated on the 
throne of the Caesars, which he occupied not discreditably 
during a reign of nine years. 

627. Justinian succeeded his uncle Justin. The talent of this 
prince lay in the selection of fit persons to execute his plans 
of war and legislation ; foi he never himself appeared in the 




Don John of Austria. 



203 



CHAI I. BARBARIANS IN THE WESTERN EMPIRE. 205 

field, and his mind was narrow and confined. Yet Justinian 
has the fame of forming a regular and copious body of juris- 
prudence, embracing, digesting, and simplifying the mass of 
judicial wisdom, which had accumulated under the kings, 
consuls, and emperors. This important work was executed 
by the ablest lawyers of the age, under the superintendence 
of the great Tribonian. The emperor discerned also in the 
camp the merit of Belisarius, a general worthy to stand in 
competition with those of any age. The Roman arms, under 
the conduct of Belisarius, checked the pride of Persia; over- 
turned the Vandalic kingdom in Africd, and reduced that 
country to a province of the empire ; conquered the East- 
Goths of Italy, and led their king a captive to Constantino- 
ple. But the great military and private virtues of Belisarius 
were shaded by too slavish a submission to the arbitrary will 
of an ungrateful court, and too great blindness to the vices of 
his wife, the wanton and vindictive Antonina. The emperor 
himself was the slave of his passion for the empress Theo- 
dora; who, from the condition of the vilest of prostitutes and 
most shameless of pantomimists, had been elevated to a share 
of the imperial throne. Justinian had a thirst for fame ; he 
adorned the capital with stately buildings. The church of 
St. Sophia, now a mosch, remains a monument of his taste. 
. One of his nephews, Justin II., was the successor of Jus- a.d. 
tinian. In his reign Narses, the valiant eunuch, offended, as ^^^ 
is said, by an expression of the empress Sophia, invited the 
Lombards into Italy ; and that country was lost to the empire. 
Disease afflicted Justin: he was unable to leave his palace 
and attend to the affairs of his people ; his mind was over- 
whelmed with the magnitude and responsibility of his office ; 
he resolved to appoint a successor, and abdicate. The em- 
, press recommended Tiberius, the captain of his guard. Justin 
transferred to him his diadem, in the presence of the patriarch 
and the senate ; and during the four years he survived, he ex- 
perienced every attention from the worthy object of his gen- 
erosity. 

Tiberius governed with every kingly virtue. Success 578. 
crowned the arms of his generals in the Persian war ; but a 
fatal disease seized on the excellent monarch, and, in four 
years afler the death of Justin, carried him off, amidst the 
tears of his people. He gave his daughter and his diadem 
to Maurice, a prince worthy to occupy his throne. But in a 582. 
war against the Avars, a tribe of Turkish race, Maurice re- 
fused to redeem the prisoners who had fallen into their hands. 
The army mutinied, and invested Phocas, a centurion, with 
18 



k. p. 



206 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PART II. 

the purple ; and by his order Maurice and his children were 
murdered. 

602. The vices and tyranny of Phocas disg-rac ed the throne 
which had been adorned by the virtues of his predecessors. 
Every province was ripe for insurrection. Heraclius, the 
exarch of Africa, refused tribute and obedience to the tyrannic 
centurion. Crispus, the son-in-law of Phocas, who trembled 
for his life, joined the senate in calling upon Heraclius to save 
the empire. The task was committed by Heraclius to his 
son of the same name. An African fleet appeared before 
Constantinople : the tyrant was deserted, taken, and put to 
death. 

610. The reign of Heraclius was a series of struggles against 
foreign enemies. Chosroes (Khosroo), the Persian monarch, 
under pretext of avenging the death of Maurice, had made 
war on Phocas. The first intelligence Heraclius received 
was that of the capture of Antioch. Jerusalem was next 
. taken by the victorious Persians ; they poured into Egypt, 
and the Persian standard was carried as far as Tripoli. An- 
other Persian army lay during ten years encamped on the 
Bosphorus, in view of Constantinople. The Avars occupied 
Thrace, and pressed the capital ; and Heraclius narrowly es- 
caped becoming the victim of their perfidy. A peace was at 
length granted by the Persian king, on the condition of a 
most enormous tribute. During the time allotted for the col- 
lection of it, Heraclius prepared for a desperate struggle : he 
put forth the soul and energy of a hero, and in six glorious 
campaigns retrieved the honor of the empire ; Assyria, and 
the regions beyond the Tigris, then beheld, for the first time, 
the victorious standards of Rome. Meanwhile the heroism 
of the emperor was caught by his people, and the Avars and 
their allies were driven with loss from before Constantinople. 
But while Heraclius and Chosroes were thus mutually ex- 
hausting their strength, a new enemy, who meditated the 
overthrow of both, was lopking on with secret satisfaction ; 
and in the heart of Arabia a storm was preparing to burst 
over both their empires. 

Persia. 

We have seen that the Parthians had recovered the greater 
part of the original dominions of the Persian kings from the 
descendants of Seleucus, and had long proved the most for- 
midable enemies of them and of the Romans. Their empire 
had gradually declined; and Ardeshir, or Artaxerxes, a Per- 
sian, and an oflicer of reputation in the army of Artaban, the 
Parthian king, and who was, or gave himself out to be, « 



CHAP. I. BARBARIANS IN THE WESTERN EMPIRE. 207 

lineal descendant of the ancient Persian monarchs, through 
his valor and conduct succeeded in wresting the sceptre from j^ u, 
the feeble grasp of the Arsacides, and the empire again be- 22fi. 
came Persian. 

The restoration of every thing to its original state in the 
glorious da3/s of the ancient monarchs, was the first object of 
Ardeshir. The Mobeds or priests of the national religion 
were summoned from their retirement to consult on the re- 
establishment of the worship of Ormuzd in its original purity ; 
for though the ancient religion had not undergone any perse- 
cution from the Arsacides, it had not been held in honor, and 
its ministers had languished in obscurity. But now, under a 
prince who regarded himself as the son of the Kaianides, the 
roligious system, which had animated the soul and nerved 
the arm of that illustrious housp, was again to flourish ; the 
disciple of Zerdusht (Zoroaster) again to combat beneath the 
banner of Ormuzd, against Ahriman and the powers of 'dark- 
ness ; and the sacred fire to flame once more on a thousand 
altars. 

By the side of religion stood military renown. Ardeshir 
put forth a claim to all the countries once contained in the 
Persian empire, and carried on heavy wars with the Romans 
for Anterior Asia, where, in Armenia, they still maintained 
on a throne the remnant of the Parthian royal family. Shah- 
poor (Sapores,) the son of Ardeshir, continued the wars of his 
father, and extended his empire towards the west. The Ro- 
man emperor Valerian ended his days a captive in the hands 
of this monarch. Galerius, whom Diocletian raised to the 
dignity of Csesar, forced the Persian king, Narses, to a peace, 
which lasted forty years, and gave Osrhoene and Nisibis to 
the empire. 

The Persian Yezdejird was the friend of the emperor Ar- 
cadius, and was suspected of Christianity by his orthodox sub- 
jects. Bahram, the succeeding king, was one of the best and 
greatest of the Sassanides. Feroze made war on the Neph- 
thalites, or White Huns, whose king had been his friend and 
protector, and lost his life in battle against them. His son, 488 
Oobad, waged war with the emperor Anastatius. His more 
illustrious son and successor, known in the West as Chosroes, 
in the East as Noosheerwan the Just, continued the wars of 
his father through the reign of Justinian; but in Belisarius he 
met an opponent such as the empire had never yet opposed ^ 
to the generals of the Persian kings. The struggle was 
maintained throughout the life of Noosheerwan with mutual 
loss, and the final gain of neither. Hormuz, his son, in despite 57<» 
of ■]ie carefuF education bestowed by his father, became a 



208 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PART II. 

tyrant : the provinces rose in rebellion ; the Roman arms a>d 
^. D. vanced on one side, the Turkish Khan on another. A hen^ 
590. Bahram, saved his country, and usurped the throne. Hormut 
died in prison ; his son, Khosroo, fled to the protection of 
Maurice ; the Roman arms and his faithful subjects restored 
him to the throne of his fathers : Bahram fled to the Turks, 
and there died by poison. Khosroo, as we have just seen, 
took arms to avenge the murder of his protector Maurice, and 
628. carried on a long- and bloody war with Heraclius. Defeated 
by the Romans, he was murdered by his son Siroes. The 
parricide enjoyed the fruit of his crimes but eight months. 
Twelve years longer the empire was agitated by anarchy and 
bloodshed, till the victorious arms of the Arabian khalifs ended 
the dominion of the house of Sassan in the person of Yezde- 
jird III. 



CHAP.'lI. 

THE TIMES OF MOHAMMED AND THE FIRST KHALIFS. 

Mohammed. 

While Chosroes of Persia Avas pursuing his dreams of re- 
covering and enlarging the empire of Cyrus, and Heracliua 
was gallantly defending the empire of the Csesars against 
him ; while idolatry and metaphysics were diflflising their 
baleful influence through the church of Christ, and the sim- 
plicity and purity of the Gospel were nearly lost beneath the 
mythology, which occupied the place of that of ancient Greece 
and Rome, the seeds of a new empire, and of a new religion, 
were sown in the inaccessible deserts of Arabia. 
66y. At the time when the sceptre of Constantinople was swayed 
by the pious nephew of Justinian, and that of Persia by the 
vigorous hand of Noosheerwan the Just, was bom in the city 
of Mecca, in Arabia, Mohammed, the son of Abdallah, and 
grandson of Abd-ul-Motallib, one of the richest and most gen- 
erous chiefs of the Koreish. Mohammed was early left an 
orphan ; his uncles were numerous and powerful, and, in the 
division of his grandfather's property, his share was but five 
camels and a female slave. His uncle Aboo Taleeb reared 
him : at the age of twenty-five he entered the service of KJia- 
dijah, a rich widow of Mecca ; and with her merchandise ac- 
companied the caravans to Damascus. The honor and fidelity 
of the factor to his mistress was exemplary ;|the person of 
Mohammed was handsome and dignified, his aspect majestic, 



CHAP. 11 MOHAMMED AND THE FIRST KHALIFS. 209 

his eye penetrating, his smile irresistible, his voice harmoni- 
ous, and eloquence flowed from his tonguel Khadijah admired 
and loved ; the generosity of Aboo Taieea made up the defi- 
ciency of his nephevi^'s fortune : she gave him her hand and 
her wealth, and thus raised him to his proper rank in society. 
The gratitude and affection of the son of Abdallah caused the 
noble matron never to regret her act. 

Mohammed was of a serious contemplative mind. He had 
long been convinced of the great truth of the unity of the 
Deity, and he mourned over the idolatry of his countrymen, 
[n the solitude of a cavern near Mecca, whither he used to 
retire for meditation, he reflected on the best mode of bring- 
ing them to an acknowledgment of the truth. Arabian tra- 
dition spake of ancient prophets sent to reclaim men from 
error ; Moses and Jesus were, he knew, commissioned from 
heaven to teach ; he may have expected a similar commission ; 
his enthusiasm may have beguilcid his imagination, and in 
ecstatic vision the angel Gabriel possibly may have appeared 
to descend to him : but it is far more probable that he con- 
ceived that the end justified the means ; that the arguments 
of reason, which he had, perhaps, already tried, would have 
no effect on the obtuse minds of the adorers of J360 idols ; that 
only as the envoy of heaven could he look for attention, and 
that his first vision of Gabriel was as fictitious as his latter 
ones notoriously were. a. d 

In the 40th year of his age, Mohammed announced to his 60a 
wife Khadijah, his slave Zeid, his pupil Ali, and his friend 
Aboo Beker, a direct commission from God to preach the 
doctrine of his Unity. They may have believed, they may 
have seen the distant prospects of temporal power and glory 
that awaited them ; they acknowledged the prophet. During 
the next three years, ten of the principal citizens of Mecca 
embraced the new faith. In the fourth year, he offered the 
blessing to his own kindred, the race of Hashem ; and was 
warned in vain by Aboo Taleeb, the father of Ali, to abandon 
his impracticable project. Ten years longer he preached 
publicly and privately in Mecca to the inhabitants and as- 
sembled pilgrims, warning them to embrace the truth, and to 
remember the fate of the tribes of Ad and Thamood, whose 
impenitence had brought down the vengeance of offended 
heaven. 

Persecution was at length employed against him and his 
disciples. As long as Aboo Taleeb lived, he protected his 
nephew, though he rejected his prophetic claims; but he 
died : the faithful Khadijah soon followed him ; Aboo Sofian, 
1 declared pnemy, succeeded to the place and power of Aboo 
18* 



210 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART U 

Taleeb ; and the death of Mohammed was resolved on. Timely 
information enabled him and his friend Aboo Beker to fly to 
the concealment of a cavern; where, during three days, they 
escaped the perquisitions of their enemies. They then mount- 
ed their camels and fled towards Yatreb : on the road they 

A.D. were overtaken; but by prayers and promises they escaped. 

622. This memorable event, denominated the Hejira, or Flighty 
gave name and origin to the era by which years are counted 
in all countries professing the tenets of Islam. 

At Yatreb, henceforth called Medinat-en-Nabi {the City 
of the Prophet)^ he was received with every testimonial of 
respect. Its principal citizens had already formed with him 
at Mecca a treaty of conversion and alliance; and the people 
had ratified the compact, and now submitted to his rule as 
prophet and king. War ensued between his new subjects 
and his foes at Mecca : the white banner of the prophet was 
soon seen to float before the gates of Medina ; and his sacred 
person was not unsparingly exposed in the tumult of the 
conflict. 

Mohammed may have been originally only an enthusiast^ 
and have dreamed of no other weapons for the difiiision of his 
faith than those of eloquence and persuasion. At the head 
of an army he became a fanatic. The sublime doctrine of 
the Unity might, he saw, be made the foundation of temporal 
dominion. The Koran — the book of his law — ^now breathes 
a fiercer tone, and the sword is to be called to the aid of the 
truth. Henceforth we are to contemplate the prophet as a 

62a prince and conqueror at the head of armies. The battle of 
Beder was the commencement of his career of victory. Aboo 
Sofian was, with only thirty or forty followers, conducting a 
caravan of 1000 camels : a party of the troops of the prophet, 
in number 313, lay in wait for it ; the Koreish, to the amount 
of 100 horse and 850 foot, advanced to its protection. The 
prophet and his troops lay between the caravan and the 
troops of Mecca : he determined to assail the latter ; exhorted 
his men, ascended a pulpit, and called on God for the aid of 
Gabriel and 3000 angels. His troops were yielding; the 
prophet mounted his horse, cast a handful of sand into the 
air, crying, "Let their faces be covered with confusion." 
The Koreish were panic-struck, and fled ; 70 were slain, an 
equal number taken prisoners. A second battle was fought 
at Mount Ohud, near Mecca. The Koreish were 3000 strong, 
the followers of the prophet numbered but 950; and, notwith- 
standing his military skill and valor, he was forced to abandon 
the field, and the bodies of 70 of the saints. Next year 10,000 

625 men sat down, in vain, before the walls of Medina ; tempests 




211 



:;HAP. 11. MOHAMMED AND THE FIRST KHALIFS. 213 

and dissension forced them to retire without fame, and the 
Koreish lost their hopes of overcoming the exile. 

The Jews formed several tribes in Arabia. Mohammed at 
first soug-ht to gain them to his faith ; but, finding them in- 
flexible, he unsheathed the sword against them. Everywhere 
their resistance was overcome, and their treasures divided 
among the victorious Mussulmans. The conquest of Mecca 
was the object next the prophet's heart : he advanced against 
it ; but awed by the martial appearance of the Koreish, he 
negotiated and concluded a truce for ten years, stipulating a 
permission to enter the city the following year to perform 
his devotions. In the pilgrimage made in consequence by 
him and his followers, Khaled and Amroo, the bravest war- 
riors of the Koreish, embraced the faith of Islam. The Kore- 
ish were soon accused of breach of truce ; 10,000 Moslems 
marched against the holy city ; resistance was not to be at- 
tempted ; and Aboo Soflan in person presented the keys to a. o 
Mohammed, and confessed him to be the prophet of the one 629 
true God. 

The last great effort in the sinking cause of the idols was 
made in the valley of Honain, in the war called that of the 
Idols. A confederacy was formed, at the head of which 
stood the people of Tayef, a strong fortress, sixty miles south- 
east of Mecca : 4000 of the confederates occupied the valley 
of Honain ; 12,000 Moslems advanced with rash confidence, 
and were speedily thrown into confusion : the prophet was • 
surrounded, and only saved by the devotedness of ten of his 
disciples; his own voice, and that of his uncle Abbas, re- 
stored the battle. The idolaters were finally routed ; Tayef 
taken, and their temples destroyed. The whole of Arabia 
now acknowledged that " there was but one God, and that 
Mohammed was his prophet;" and a train of 114,000 True 
Believers attended his last pilgrimage to the Caabah. 

When the Moslem ambassador waited on Heraclius to 
invite him to the profession of Islam, a degree of amity en- 
sued between the emperor and the prophet. The murder of 
a Moslem envoy in the empire gave the Arabs the wished-for 
pretext for invading the country east of the Jordan. The 
command of 3000 men was intrusted to Zeid, and in case of 
his death to Jaaffer, and then to Abdallah. In the battle of 
Muta the three leaders fell gallantly fighting. Khaled re- 
stored the battle, and repulsed the Christians. At the head 
of 10,000 horse, and 20,000 foot, the prophet advanced 
towards Syria, in the hottest season of the year. Their suf- 
ferings were intolerable ; and when they reached the fountain 
of Tabook, midway between Mecca and Damascus, he de- 



214 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

clared himself satisfied of the peaceful intentions of the em- 
peror; perhaps he dreaded the number and valor of the 

^ u Roman troops. 

630 In the 63d year of his age, Mohammed, afler beholding his 
religion spread over the Arabian peninsula, felt the approach 
of death: he comforted and instructed his friends and the 
people, manumitted his slaves, gave orders about his funeral, 
appointed Aboo Beker to pronounce public prayer m his place, 
and then calmly expired. The disconsolate Moslems would 
not believe him dead till their clamor was silenced by the 

632. scimitar of Omar and the arguments of Aboo Beker. 

The First Khalifs. 

On the death of the prophet, it might have been expected 
that Ali, his cousin and earliest disciple, and who was mar- 
ried to his daughter Fa tema, would have been appointed 
Khalif, i. e. successor ; but Ayesha, the favorite wife of Mo- 
hammed, was his mortal enemy. Discord was on the point 

632. of breaking out, when Omar proposed the election of the 
venerable Aboo Beker: he was accepted, and during two 
years governed with justice and impartiality. In his reign, 
the indefatigable lOialed continued his conquests in Syria, 
and from the Euphrates to the Mediterranean the khalif was 
obeyed. 

634. The sceptre was bequeathed by the khalif to Omar, one of 
the oldest of the companions of the prophet. In the twelfth 
year of his reign, Omar perished by the dagger of an assas- 
shi. Ali still forbore putting forward his claims; and six 
electors, of whom he himself was one, chose Othman, the 

644. secretary of the prophet. 

Othman was unequal to his high situation : old age had 
enfeebled his mental powers. The subjects became discon- 
tented. A large army assembled before Medina ; the khalif 
was forced to surrender, and he fell with the Koran in his 
lap. The brother of Ayesha headed the assassins. The public 

655. choice now fell on Ali. 

Ali in old age displayed all the daring courage of his youth. 
Two powerful chiefs, Telha and Zobeir, erected the standard 
of revolt in Irak: they were joined by Ali's implacable enemy, 
Ayesha, and, mounted on her camel, she appeared in the 
thickest of the battle, encouraging the rebels, but in vain ; 
they were slain, and she was taken. The khalif reproached 
her, and then dismissed her to pass the remainder of her days 
at the tomh of the prophet. A more formidable enemy now 
appeared in Moawiyah, son of Aboo Sofian, and governor of 
Syria, who assumed the title of khalif, and gave himself out 



CHAP. II. .^lOHAMMED AND THE FIRST KHALIFS. 215 

as the avenger of Othman, whose bloody shirt he exposed in 
the mosch of Damascus. The cause of Moawiyah was em- 
braced by Amroo, the conqueror of Egypt. Ali took the field 
with an inferior force, and during 110 days a war was waged 
on the plain of Siffin, on the western bank of the Euphrates, 
to the advantage of Ali, till the superstition and disobedience 
of his troops forced him to yield to a treaty. Ali did not long 
survive. Three fanatics met in the temple of Mecca, and 
agreed to murder Ali, Moawiyah, and Amroo, as the only 
means of restoring peace to the church and state. Each chose 
his victim : he alone succeeded who selected Ali, who fell by 
his dagger in the mosch of Cufa, in the 63d year of his age. 
Moawiyah was now acknowledged khalif, and the seat of era- a d 
pire transferred to Damascus. 6i<). 

The virtues of the first four khalifs are acknowledged ; 
but, by a large portion of the Mohammedan church, the first 
three are looked on and cursed as usurpers. Those that hold 
this opinion are denominated Sheeahs, and it is an article of 
their faith, that Ali is the vicar of God. This is the estab- 
lished religion of Persia. The Soonees, or orthodox, to whom 
the Turks belong, regard all the four as rightful successors 
of the prophet, but they assign the lowest degree of sanctity 
to Ali. It is almost needless to add, that the hatred of the 
rival sects is most cordial and intense. 

Conquest of Syria. 

During the reign of the first four khalifs, Syria, Persia, 
and Egypt were conquered by their lieutenants, and the law 
of the Prophet embraced, -or tribute yielded, by the inhabit-* 
ants. 

On the accession of Aboo Beker, he dispatched an army, 632 
under the command of Aboo Obeidah, for the conquest of 
Syria. The first object of their attack was the fo'rtress of 
Bozra, eastward of the Jordan. The false confidence of the 
people, and the treachery of the governor, delivered it into 
the hands of the Moslems. Damascus was distant but fijur 
days' journey ; its siege was undertaken ; but intelligence of 
the approach of a large army to its relief, induced the Mo- 
hammedan chiefs to suspend their operations till they had 
encountered the imperial forces. All the forces scattered on 
the borders of Syria and Palestine were summoned to the 
standard of the faith. 

On the plains of Aiznadin, the troops of the khalif, 45,000 633. 
in number, and guided by Khaled, Amroo, and their most dis- 
tinguished leaders, encountered the Christian host of 70,000 
men. Liberal offers of peace were made by the Greeks, and 



216 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART n. 

disdained by the Arabs. The conflict began ; it continued 
throughout the day with doubtful succe.ss; in the evening, 
Klialed made a furious onset, and victory declared for the 
Moslem arms : the field was covered with the bodies of the 
Christians, and inestimable booty rewarded the victors. Da- 
mascus was again invested. Animated by their brave gov- 
ernor, Thomas, a nobleman allied to the emperor, the garrison 
and citizens offered a gallant resistance ; till after experienc- 
ing the inutility of all the efforts of valor, they capitulated to 
the mild and upright Aboo Obeidah, on condition of those who 
chose being permitted to depart with as much as they could 
I \ carry of their effects, and those who stayed being allowed to 
6 retain their lands, houses, and seven churches tributary to 
the khalifs. A large number departed. Urged by the im- 
portunity of a Syrian renegade, whose mistress was among 
the fugitives, Khaled pursued them with 4000 horse. The 
ill-fated Damascenes were overtaken ; not a soul, save one, 
escaped the Arabian scimitar ; but the traitor to his country 
and his faith perished by the dagger of his indignant mistress 
at the moment he attempted to embrace her. 
63^ The following year saw Heliopolis, or Baalbek, the capital 
of the rich valley of Hollow Syria, and Hems, or Emessa, the 
chief city of the plain, in the hands of the khalifs lieuten- 
ants. 

636 The banks of the Yermuk, a stream that flows from Mount 
Hermon into the lake of Tiberias, was the scene of the last 
g-reat battle for the possession of Syria. Eighty thousand of 
the imperial troops stood with 60,000 Christian Arabs of the 
tribe of Gassan against the MoslenTs. It was the most doubt- 
ful day the faithful had yet seen ; but the Sword of God (so 
Khaled was styled) was victorious. Countless was the loss 
of the Christians; 4030 Moslems lay on the plain. 

After a month spent at Damascus, to recruit their vigor 
and divide the spoil, the impatient host marched to invest the 
sacred walls of .lerusalem. The siege lasted four months ; 
a surrender was then offered to the khalif in person. The 
sanctity of the place moved Omar, and he undertook the jour- 
ney from Medina through the waste. The holy city received 
the khalif, and on the site of the temple he laid the founda- 

637 tion of the mosch named from himself. 

638 Aleppo and Antioch, the only remaining places of strength, 
submitted to the victorious arms of the Arabs, and all Syria 
obeyed the successor of the prophet. Heraclius abandoned 
that portion of his dominions in despair, and the ravages of 
the Moslems extended to within view of Constantinople. 




19 



217 



CHAP. II. MOHAMMED AND THE FIRST KHALIFS 219 

Conquest of Persia. 

In the first year of Aboo Baker, Khaled appeared on the Q2i 
banks of the Euphrates. In the same year with the conquest 
of Syria, 30,000 Moslems engaged the numerous host of Yez- 638. 
dejird III., the youthful grandson of Khosroo, on the plains 
of Cadesia, on the edge of the desert, 61 leagues from the 
future Bagdad. The troops of Persia were commanded by 
Roostem, a namesake of the national hero; the Direfsh-e- 
Kawanee, or Apron of Kawah, the banner of the empire, 
blazed in their front. On the fourth day of the battle, the 
flying Roostem was overtaken and slain, and the jewel-set 
Direfsh-e-Kawanee was captured. All Irak, the ancient As- 
syria, submitted, and the city of Bassora was founded, to com- 
mand the trade of Persia. 

In the third month after the battle, the Tigris was passed ; 
Madain or Ctesiphon, the capital of the empire, was taken 
by assault, and immense plunder enriched the faithful. Yez- 
dejird had fled to Holwan, at the foot of the hills of Media. 
The loss of the fortress of Jalooia made him fly to the moun- 
tains of Farsistan, the country of Cyrus. At Nahavend, to 
the south of Hamadan, 150,000 Persians made a final effort 
for their country and their religion. The appellation. Victory 
of victories, bestowed on this battle by the Arabs, proves the 
fatal result. All the cities and towns of Persia submitted to 
the conquerors. Their banners approached the Caspian and 
the Oxus. Yezdejird had fled to Chorasan, and taken refuge 
in Merv. The governor of that city invited the khakan of 
the Turks to take possession, of his person. The Turks en- 
tered, and made themselves masters of Merv. Yezdejird es- 
caped during the confusion, and sought shelter with a miller, 
who murdered him while he slept, for the sake of his jrich 651. 
arms and robes. 

Conquest of Egypt. 

The year in which the conquest of Syria was completed 638 
\hat of Egypt commenced. Amroo marched from Gaza with 
4000 Arabs. After a siege of thirty days, Pelusium surren- 
dered, Memphis held out seven months against the Saracen 
army, now double its original number. It was taken by as- 
sault. The city of Cairo rose on the spot where the Arabs 
had encamped. 

Religious enmity facilitated the conquest of the country. 
The Egyptians hated the creed and the government of the 
emperors. A treaty was entered into between Amroo and 
Mokawkas, a noble Egyptian. It was agreed tliat, for a mod^ 



220 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II 

erate t,ribute, the Christian inhabitants should be left in the 
full enjoyment of their religion and their property. The 
whole nation fell off from the Greeks, and every assistance 
was rendered to the Arabs. The city of Alexandria remained 
to be conquered; an achievement, perhaps, surpassing in 
difficulty any the Arabs had yet attempted. Its inhabitants 
were numerous and resolute, its supplies abundant, the sea 
was open, affording a facility of relief. The Saracens strained 
every nerve ; the tribes of the desert crowded to the standard 
A. D. of Amroo ; the Egyptians labored strenuously, and, at the 
639 end of fourteen months and the loss of 23,000 men, the Mos- 
lems saw themselves masters of the capital of Egypt. The 
khalif rigidly forbade pillage ; a tribute was imposed on the 
inhabitants. The truth of the destruction of the library of 
the Ptolemies has been questioned. The loss of Alexandria 
hastened the death of Heraclius. In the space of four years 
two fruitless attempts were made to recover it. 

Invasion of Africa. 

647. Under the reign of Othman the conquest of Africa was 
attempted by the Moslem arms, led by Abdallah, the foster- 
brother of the khalif At the head of 40,000 men, he ad- 
vanced from Egypt into the west. After a toilsome march 
they appeared before the walls of Tripoli ; but tlie approa ch 
of the prefect Gregory, with a numerous army, called the 
Saracens from the siege to the field. For several days the 
two armies encountered from morning till noon. The daugh- 
ter of Gregory fought by his side, and her hand and 100,000 
pieces of gold were offered to the warrior who should bring 
the head of the Arab general. Zobeir, who afterwards fell 
in rebellion against the khalif Ali, joined his brethren : his 
stratagem defeated the army of Gregory, who fell by his 
hand. The town of Sufatula, 150 miles south of Carthage, 
was taken. The country on all sides implored the clemency 
of the conqueror ; but his losses and the appearance of an 
epidemic disease prevented a settlement being formed, and 
after a campaign of fifteen months, the Saracen army re-en- 
tered Egypt with their captives and their booty. 

From the battle of Beder till the death of Ali, a period 
elapsed of 37 years, during which the arms of the Arabs had 
penetrated from the heart of Arabia to the banks of the 
Oxus and Indus, and the shores of the Euxine and Caspian. 
The Nile ro led within their dominions ; Africa, Cyprus, and 
Rhodes, had 3een visited and plundered by their victorious 
warriors. 



CHAP. li. MOHAMMED AND THE FIRST KHALIFS. 221 

The Ommiyades, 

When Ali was murdered, his rights passed to his son Has- 
san, who was induced by Moawiyah to abandon his claim 
and retire to Medina. The khalifat was now established in 
the house of Ommiyah, in which it continued during seventy 
years through fourteen khalifs, and extended its sway from 
the Pyrenees and the Atlantic to the borders of Turkestan 
and India, the largest empire and most powerful monarchs of 
the globe. This dynasty derived its appellation from Ommi- 
yah, one of the chiefs of the Koreish : Aboo Sofian, his de- 
scendant, long resisted the prophet; his son, Moawiyah, be- 
came his secretary, and Omar made him governor of Syria. 
The first Ommiyah Khalif was a man of courage, though he 
declined the proposal of the chivalrous Ali, who offered to 
decide their dispute by single combat : his son Yezid, and his 
successors, were princes of little merit, and never partook m 
the toils and glories of war. 

Conquest of Africa, 

Oppressed by the exactions of the court of Byzantium, the 
people of Africa invoked the aid of the Arabs. The lieuten- 
ant of Moawiyah entered Africa, defeated an imperial army 
of 30,000 men, and returned laden with booty. Akbeh, a 
valiant warrior, marched from Damascus with 10,000 Arabs ; 
his army was joined by numerous African auxiliarits; victory 
led him to the shor^ of the Atlantic, and he founded the 
city of Cairoan, fifty miles south of Tunis, to secure his con- 
quests. But Akbeh fell in battle against the revolted Greeks 
and Africans. His successor, Zuheir, shared his fate. The 
final conquest was reserved for Hassan, governor of Egypt, 
who took and destroyed Carthage, and subdued the Berbers 4. n. 
of the desert. Musa, his successor, bix>ke their power ef- VO'J 
fectually when they rose in rebellion. 

Conquest of Spain, 

The Gothic monarchy in Spain was now utterly enfeebled 
Having no foreign foes, military discipline had been neglect- 
ed, and luxury had quite altered the descendants of Theo- 
deric. Rod eric, a nobleman, had, on the death of Witiza, 
ascended his throne, to the exclusion of the two sons of thai 
monarch: their uncle, Oppas, was archbishop of Toledo; 
Count Julian, a partisan, was governor of Ceuta and Andalu- 
sia ; the malcontents were numerous. It is added, that Rod- 
eric had given farther offence by violating Cava, the daughte* 
of Julian. 
19* 



222 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. ^ ^ T. 

Julian had repulsed Musa from the wall? /r / »- ita, but 
soon after he entered into correspondence «• -tr ,^e Arab 

K. D. chief, and offered to give him entrance into Sy .^. The per- 

"•l^ mission of the khalif, Walid, was obtained. A small body 
of troops, commanded by Tarif, passed over and advanced to 
the castle of Julian, at Algeziras, where they were hospita- 

711- bly entertained and joined by the Christians. The. folio wing" 
spring 5(X)0 Moslems, under the command of Tarik, passed 
over and landed at Gibraltar, named from their chief. They 
defeated the Gothic commander sent against them. Roderic 
collected an army of near 100,000 men ; the Saracens were 
augmented to 12,000, besides their Spanish and African aux- 
iliaries. On the banks of the Guadaleta, near the town of 
Xeres, the battle was fought which decided the fate of the 
(lothic monarchy. Three days were occupied in bloody but 
undecisive skirmishing, the fourth was the day of general 
conflict. The Saracens were yielding to multitudes; Tarik 
still animated his men, when Oppas and the sons of Witiza, 
who occupied the most important post in the army of the 
Goths, passed over to the enemy, and turned the fortime of 
the field. The flight and pursuit lasted three days. Roderic 
fled on tlie back of his swiftest horse, but escaped the battle 
only to be drowned in the waters of the Guadalquivir. 

The whole country submitted without resistance to the 
victorious Tarik. Toledo, the Gothic capital, opened her 
gates, stipulatino- only for freedom of religion and internal 
government. Witliin almost as short a time as a traveller 
could traverse Spain, the general of Musa beheld the bay of 
Biscay. Envious of the fame of Tarik, Musa hastened his 
passage to Spain at the head of 18,000 men : the cities of 
Seville and Merida resisted ; and the defence of the latter 
was obstinate, and only subdued by famine. The Tarrago- 
nese province was speedily overrun by Tarik, and the Goths 
were pursued into their Gallic province of Septimania. A 
valiant remnant of the Goths maintained their independence 

U4. in the rugged mountains of Asturia. All the rest of Spain 
obeyed the successors of the prophet. 

At the same time that the khalif Walid received intelli- 
gence of the conquest of Spain, messengers from the East 
arrived to announce the first successes of the Mussulman 
arms in India. 

Invasion of France by the Arabs. 

668 The Arabs of the East had twice besieged Constantinople* 
<fe eacn time they had retired with dishonor. The commandei 
'^* of the faithful had even paid tribute ^ rfte Eastern emperor. 




Queen Elizabeth. 



228 



CHAP. II. MOHAMMED AND THE FIRST KHALIFS. 225 

Five years after the raising of the second siege of the a. d. 
Eastern capital, the kingdom of the Franks was menaced "^^l 
with destruction by the khalif's viceroy in Spain. Eudes, 
duke of Aquitaine, was a prince nearly independent of the 
feeble successors of Clovis. The Moslems claimed Septima- 
nia from him as a part of the Spanish monarchy. An army 
passed the Pyrenees, but was defeated, and its leader slain, 
before the walls of Toulouse. A second appeared, and re- 
duced all France from the Garonne to the Rhone. The valiant 
Abd-er-rahman resolved on the conquest of the whole of the 
dominions of the Merovingians : he laid siege to Aries, and 
defeated an army sent to its relief: to the north of Bourdeaux 
he encountered and slaughtered the army of Eudes. The 
Moslems appeared before Tours and Sens in Burgundy : their 
troops were beheld from the walls of Lyons and Besan^on. 
Fortunately there was a hero in France. Charles the son of 
Pepin was mayor of the palace in Neustria : he collected an 
army of French and Germans, and encountered the Arabs on 
the plains between Tours and Poitiers. On the seventh day 73a 
of the conflict victory declared for the Europeans : Abd-er- 
rahman fell ; the Saracens retired, fell into dissension, and 
evacuated the country, to which they never returned. More 
than 300,000 Moslems are said, with gross exaggeration, to 
have fallen ; and the epithet of Martel, the Hammer^ bestow- 
ed on Charles, proves the vigor of his arm in the conflict. 

France. 

The degenerate descendants of Clovis had during this period 
sunk into utter insignificance. All power was in the hands 
of the mayors of the palace : these officers headed the armies, 
and disposed of lands and offices. The kings, retired in their 
palace, enjoyed the luxury of a well-furnished table, and on 
the May meetings (Champs de Mai) of the nation, they were 
drawn in their chariot by four oxen to receive the homage of 
their people, and follow the directions of the mayor. The 
dignity of mayor was transmitted from father to son. Pepin 
Heristal appointed his illegitimate son Charles to succeed 
him, in preference to his lawful issue ; and the field of Tours 
•ustified his choice. 

The Lombards. 

Authar, king of the Lombards, governed his people with 584 
wisdom and equity, and fought with success against the im- 
perial exarchs and the Franks. His widow, Theudelinda, 590 
tfiarried Agilulf, duke of Turin : the nation received him as 
king. Pope Gregory 1. mediated peace between him and 5*J9 



226 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IL 

the exarchs; and he also cultivated peace with tjie Franks 
and Avers. His queen encouraged the beneficent sway of 

4. D. the Christian religion, and gradually brought the Lombards 

616 to relish the delights of peace. Agilulf was succeeded by his 
son Adelwald ; but losing his senses by drink, the sceptre 

625. was transferred to his brother-in-law Ariwald. On the death 
of Ariwald, Rother, another son-in-law of Agilulf, was elect- 

636. ed. This prince first collected the laws of the Lombards into 
a code. His son and successor, Rodwald, was murdered by 
man whose wife he had abused ; and the nation elected Ari 

652. bert, nephew of queen Theudelinda. Aribert sought to leav 
his sons Perthari and Godibert joint sovereigns : they fell into 

661. discord. Godibert was slain by Grimwald, duke of Benevento, 
one of his own partisans : Perthari, on hearing this, fled to 
Hungary. Grimwald reigned with justice, and defeated the 
Franks who came in aid of Perthari : this latter succeeded 

671. him, and reigned with great mildness and equity. After va- 
rious transitions, the crown was placed on the head of Ans- 

710, brand, a Bavarian, a man advanced in years and wisdom. His 
son, Liiprand, was the most powerful and one of the ablest of 
the Lombard monarchs. Great friendship prevailed between 
him and Charles Martel, who sent his son to have his hair 
first cut by the Lombard king, who thereby, according to the 
ideas of the Franks, became a second father to the young 
Pepin. 

Constantinople. 

641. Heraclius was succeeded by his son Constantine 11., with 
whom the queen Martina had her own son Heraclionas asso- 
ciated. Constantine died after a short reign of 103 days. 
Heraclionas and his mother were banished, and Constans H., 
the son of Constantine, a boy of twelve years, placed on the 
throne. He caused his brother Theodosius to be murdered , 
passed over to Italy ; waged an unsuccessful war against the 
Lombards ; plundered Rome and several other cities of Italy 

*>62 and Sicily of the works of art, which he collected in Syracuse, 
and embarked for Constantinople ; but the ships which car- 
ried them were taken by the Saracens and brought to Alex- 
andria. Their precious freight was dispersed and lost. Con- 

668. stans was murdered, after a six years' residence in Sicily. 

In the reign ^f his son Constantine IV. Africa was lost, and 

68.^. Constantinople besieged. Justinian II. succeeded, was ex- 
pelled, returned, and exercised "the most savage cruelty. 
Pnilippicus Bardanes avenged humanity on the tyrant ; but 

711 was himself dethroned and blinded. Anastatius followed 

713 The army raised a native of Adramyttium to the throno, bf 



CHAP. III. CHARLEMAGNE AND HAROONERRASHEED. 227 

cause his name was Theodosius : he laid down his dignity as a. d. 
soon as he safely could ; and Leo, an Isaurian, a brave man, 717. 
was placed on the throne of Constantinople, which he gal- 
lantly defended two years against the arms of the khalifs. 

Germany. 
Germany received during this period the first beams of the 
beneficent light of the Gospel. An Englishman, named Win- 
fred, went through the country preaching the faith, and 
drawing the people from the worship of idols : he collected 
them into towns, where afterwards cities rose. The pope 
Gregory II. beholding his zeal, bestowed on Winfred, now 
called Boniface, the dignity of a bishop, and the office of 
legate. Mentz became the see of this first bishop, whence, 
as the sword of Charles Martel smote the rude tribes of Ger- 
many, the bishops in\^ted them to receive the religion of 
Rome, and the more polished manners of the Franks. The 
sword and the Gospel went together in Germany, as the 
sword and the Koran in Asia. Monasteries, those asylums 
of peace, amidst the storms of the middle ages, were founded 
in Germany by the labors of Boniface. 

England. 
In the pontificate of Gregory the Great, the Gospel was 
preached to the Anglo-Saxons by Augustine and his com- 
panions, sent by the zealous pontiff" from Rome with that de- 
sign. Their first efforts were in the kingdom of Kent, whose 
king, Ethelbert, was married to a Christian princess of the 
house of Meroveus. The king and his nobles embraced the 
new faith, which was gradually extended to the other king- 
doms into which the Anglo-Saxons had partitioned the island. 
It is a remarkable feature in the character and piety of the 
Anglo-Saxon princes, that continually the world was edified 
by the sight of one of them quitting his throne, and all the 
pomps and cares of royalty, and retiring to pass the evening 
of his days in the shade of a monastery, or in the holy citv 
r>f the supreme pontiff!^ 



CHAP. III. 

THE TIMES OF CHARLEMAGNE AND HAROON-ER-RASHEED. 

Italy. 

Amono other practices of the ancient heathenism which 
nad gradually crept into the church of Christ, was that of the 
worship of images. When Leo, the Isaurian, mounted the 



228 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PiART II. 

imperial throne, either guided by reason, or by early preju- 
dices, he warmly espoused the side of the Iconoclasts, image- 
breajcers, who opposed their worship, and a council assembled 
at Constantinople pronounced it to be heretical. When the im- 

^ 0, perial edict arrived in Italy, obedience to it was refused ; and, 

728. at the exhortation of Pope Gregory 11. , all Italy, save Naples, 
rose in arms to oppose the profane emperor : his troops were 
massacred when they landed in that country ; and the pope, 
in the plenitude of his power, was about to direct the election 
of a new emperor. 

The authority of the Byzantine emperors in Rome was 
little more than nominal : the city had nearly returned to its 
republican form ; the bishop was considered as the first 
magistrate ; and thus the temporal power of the popes was 
founded on the best of grounds, the free choice of the people. 
A series of able, enterprising, and dignified pontiffs, the three 
Gregories, Zachary, Stephen, Paul, firmly established this 
sacerdotal dominion. 

Liitprand, king of the Lombards, took Ravenna, and men- 
aced Rome. This prince aimed at uniting all Italy under one 
sovereign ; but the policy of the popes, and the resistance of 
the princes and states, prevented the execution of his designs. 

744. The iron crown passed, after the death of his nephew and 
successor Hildebrand, to Rachis duke of Friuli, who shortly 
after, with his wife and daughter, abandoned the cares of 

749. royalty, and retired to the monastery of Monte Casino. The 
choice of the nation fell on his brother Astolfo (Aistulf). This 
prince made the final conquest of the exarchate of Ravenna, 
and summoned Rome to acknowledge his sovereignty. The 
pride of Rome and the pope disdained submission ; but their 
strength was unequal to the conflict : they turned their eyes 
for aid beyond the Alps ; and Stephen III. in person crossed 
those mountains to implore the compassion of the pious Franks, 
and of Pepin, the illustrious son of Charles Martel. He im- 
plored not in vain : an army, led by Pepin in person, entered 
Italy, and Astolfo swore to respect the possessions of the 
church ; but hardly was Pepin gone, when the Lombard forgot 
his vow. Pepin was again called on, and Astolfo was again 

766. reduced to submission. 

Astolfo was succeeded by Desiderius, duke of Tuscany. 
Falling into a dispute about their frontiers with pope Hadrian 
XL, the latter called on his powerfull ally, Charlemagne, son 
of Pepin : the passes of the Alps were betrayed, the vassals 
fell off, the Lombard king was shut up in Pavia, his capital, 
his valiant son Adelgis vainly implored, in person, aid at By- 

774 zantium. After a siege of two years, treachery gave Pavia 




20 



229 



CHAIMll. CHARLEMAGNE AND HAROON-ER-RASHEED. 231 

to the French, and Lombardy became a part of the empire of a. d 
the son of Pepin. A grateful pope (Leo) crowned the French 800 
monarch emperoi of the West. Rome did homage to his 
power: the duke of Benevento, whose duchy embraced the 
modern kingdom of Naples, acknowledged himself his vassal ; 
the Venetians, who, since the days of Attila, had dwelt in 
their isles and lagunes, revered his authority. 

The Lombards retained their laws and usages; each person 
and each district of Italy was governed by local or adopted 
laws. The great cities were governed by dukes, aided by a ' 
council of bishops, abbots, counts, knights, and gentlemen. 
The pope exercised at Rome the power possessed by the 
dukes in the other cities. He was chosen by the clergy and 
people, and the choice confirmed by the emperor. 

Empire of Charlemagne. 

On the death of Charles Martel the kingdom of the Franks 
was thrown into some confusion. The German provinces 
armed in favor of his son Grypho, against his brothers Carlo- 
man and Pepin. The latter were victorious in the contest, 
and an end was put to the duchy of Allemannia. Chilperic 
occupied the seat of Clovis ; the power of the monarchy was 
wielded by Pepin. Pope Zachary pronounced that it was 
lawful for the title to follow the power ; and at Soissons, 
where, 266 years before, the empire of the Franks had been 
founded by Clovis, his last descendant was formally deposed 
in an assembly of the nation, and sent to end his days in a l!)i. 
convent, and Pepin crowned in his place. The new monarch 
quickly destroyed his brother Carloman, and humbled the 
great. His chief exploits were against the Lombards in de- 768. 
fence of the popes. At his death he divided his dominions be- 
tween his sons Charles and Carloman. The latter lived but 
three years, -and suspicion of having hastened his end fell 
upon his brother. 771 

Charles, afterwards called Charlemagne, or Charles the 
Great, early in his reign overturned the kingdom of the Lom- 
bards. During thirty years he carried on an obstinate war 
against the Saxons, on whom he sought to impose his yoke 
and Christianity. Headed by Wittikind, a second Arminius, 
the gallant nation resisted with vigor and oerseverance. Gott- 
fried, king of Denmark, aided and gave refuge to them ; but 
the Obotrites of Mecklenburg joined the Franks, and Witti- 
kind and his people were at last forced to receive the religion 
and the law of Charlemagne. Several abandoned their coun- 
try and took refuge in Denmark, whence their descendants 
united with the Northmen issued, and avenged the blood of 



232 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART U 

their fathers on the descendants of their oppressors. In Spain 
Charles appeared as the ally of the emir of Zaragoza, and es- 
tablished the Spanish March, extending from the Ebro to the 
Pyrenees. Barcelona was the residence of the French gov- 
ernor. In Germany, he extended the French dominion to the 
Elbe, and added the kingdom of Bohemia to the Germanic 
body. A conflict of eight year's against the Avars of Pan- 
nonia gave him the possession of that country. His empire 
thus extended from the Ebro to the Elbe, from the ocean to 
the Vistula, and the Teyss and Save. The duke of Bene- 
vento acknowledged his supremacy; the king of England 
was his friend ; the Christian princes of Spain regarded him 
as a patron. Haroon-er-Rasheed honored him by gifts as an 
equal. Master of two-thirds of the Western Roman empire, 
he was crowned emperor of the Romans by Leo, on the fes- 
tival of Christmas, A. D. 800, in the sacred temple of St. 
Peter. His dynasty, called the Carlovingian, from Charles 
Martel, formed the second in France. After a long and vic- 
^, D, torious reign he left his empire, which he had widely ex- 
814. tended, and to which he had given a code of laws, to his 
son Louis the Debonair. 

Feudal System. 

As France was the chief seat of this celebrated system, the 
present period seems not unsuitable for giving a slight view 
of it. 

The Franks, like the Burgundians, Lombards, and others 
of the barbarous nations, carried their original Germanic 
ideas with them into the countries they conquered. The land 
was divided into a number of districts, over each of which 
was a count to administer justice and collect the revenue in 
peace, to lead the military contingent in war.. Several of 
these counties were under a duke. These offices were ori- 
ginally precarious, but gradually became hereditary in fami- 
lies, and the foundation of power and independence. 

At the conquest, the lands which had been seized were 
distributed into portions, according to the rank of the occu- 
pant. That of the king was considerable, and those of the 
principal officers proportionably large. These lands were 
allodial, held in propriety on the sole condition of serving in 
the defence of the country. The owner of three mansi* was 
obliged to serve m person ; where there were three possessors 
of single mansi, one served, the others contributed ^c equip 

* A manaus contained twelve jugera of Ian I. Ducange. 



CHAP. III. CHARLEMAGIVE AND HAROON-ER-RASHEED. 233 

him. All served at their own expense, and the period of ser- 
vice was limited. 

Of the Romans, or original inhabitants, some retained their 
lands in propriety ; others farmed those of the Franks. They 
were governed by their own laws. But the Franks stood 
higher in the eye of the law, and the Weregild, or composi- 
tion for homicide, was always much greater in the case of a 
Frank than of a Roman. 

The demesne lands of the crown were very extensive. 
They were the private estate of the sovereign, whence he 
was to support his dignity. Portions of these lands were 
frequently granted by the kings to favorites, under the name 
of benefices, under the usual condition of military service, 
which service appears to have differed from that of the allo- 
dial proprietors in this, that that of the latter was rather na- 
tional, that of the former rather due to the monarch person- 
ally. These benefices were granted for life, and then re- 
turned to the crown; but the son of the beneficiary was gen- 
erally continued in his benefice, and under the feeble Mero- 
vingians the benefices mostly became hereditary. The hold- 
ers of hereditary benefices now began to bestow portions of 
their benefices on others to hold of themselves, under a simi- 
lar tenure of military service. This practice, called sub-in- 
fcudation, spread greatly after the death of Charlemagne, 
and we have here the germ of the whole feudal system, with 
its burdens and obligations. 

The dukes, counts, and marquisses, or margraves, who 
guarded the marches or frontiers, gradually encroached on 
the royal dignity. They made their dignities hereditary; 
they sought to appropriate to themselves the crown lands 
within their jurisdiction ; they oppressed the free proprietors. 
These last were hitherto the strength of the state, and shared 
in the legislature, owing no duty but military service against 
the public enemy. They now were exposed without protec- 
tion to the tyranny of the count or duke. The protection of a 
powerful man was the only security ; the allodial lands were 
surrendered and received back as feudal; their owner ac- 
knowledged himself the vassal of a suzerain, and took on him 
the feudal obligations. 

These obligations were mutual, as those between patrons 
and clients at Rome : the vassal was bound to follow his lord 
to war during a limited period, usually forty days, and that 
even against a superior lord or the king ; he was not to di- 
vulge his lord's counsel, to injure his person or fortune, or the 
honor of his family. In battle he was to give his horse to liis 
lord if dismounted, to give himself as a hostage for him if 
20* 



234 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PART IT. 

taken ; he was to attend his lord's courts as a witness or a 
judge. He was to pay a fine on receiving", and another on 
alienating his fief; and he was to pay an aid to redeem his 
lord from captivity, to enable his lord to pay his own fine to 
his superior lord, on taking possession of his fief, &c. The 
%ids varied in number in different places, and these obliga- 
tions mostly grew up gradually, as the power of the lords 
enabled them to encroach. On the part of the lord, the prin- 
cipal obligation was that of protection. 

The church, though rich in lands, and hallowed by super- 
stition, did not escape the universal outrage and spoliation. 
Though the clergy were often martial, they could not meet 
the feudal lords on equal terms. The rich abbeys, therefore, 
usually adopted the practice of choosing an advocate in the 
person of some neighboring lord, on whom they bestowed sun- 
dry privileges, and generally some good fief; and who was, 
in consequence, bound to defend the interest of his clients in 
courts of law, and in the field of battle. 

The feudal system did not arrive at full maturity during 
the time of the Carlovingians, and we have here somewhat 
anticipated. It was confined to the dominions of Charle- 
magne, and to countries which, like England, borrowed it 
from them. 

England. 

Nothing remarkable happened in England during this pe- 
4, D. riod, except the union of all the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, un- 
827. der the sceptre of Egbert, king of Wessex. The Vikingar, 
or pirates of Scandinavia, now began to send forth those large 
fleets which were soon to spread devastation on the coasts of 
Europe, and Charlemagne shed tears at the sight of the first 
of them that appeared in the Mediterranean. 

Constantinople. 

Superstition, ignorance, and. feebleness increased in the 
742. eastern empire. Leo the Isaurian was succeeded by his son 
Constantine V., who carried on the war against the images 
with apparent rather than real success. The short reign of 
Leo IV. was terminated by poison, as was supposed ; and his 
widow, Irene, who governed under the name of her infant 
780 son Constantine VI., gave a final triumph to the monks by 
solemnly establishing the worship of the images. This monk- 
lauded empress stained her hands with the blood of her own 
son, and then contrived to reign alone, the first sole regnant 
^02. empress; but she lost her throne to the daring courage of 
Nicephorus. This emperor set himself resolutely but vainly 




Wallenstein. 



235 



CHAP. III. CHARLEMAGNE AND HAROON ERR ISHEED. 237 

against the image worship ; the evil had come to too great a 
head. His son and son-in-law possessed the throne but three a i 
years. A soldier, Leo Bardanes, next ascended the throne ; 81S 
but court intrigues and monkish arts impeded his judicious 
policy. His successor, Michael of Amorium, was feeble and 
unfortunate. 

The external enemies of the empire during this period 
were the Arabs under the Abbasside khalifs, who ravaged 
Lesser Asia, and the Bulgarians, a Slavonian tribe, who ad- 
vanced southwards towards the Adriatic, where they subse- 
quently occupied Dalmatia. They were now on the southern 
bank of the Danube, in the country named from them. The 
emperor Nicephorus lost his life in a battle with this nation. 810 

The Abbasside Khalifs. 

The house of Ommiyah failed in gaining the affections of 
its subjects. The family of the prophet was esteemed best 
entitled to his throne and pulpit. Of the line of Hashem, the 
Fatemites, or descendants of Ali by Fatema, the daughter of 
the prophet, had the prior claim ; but they were wanting in 746 
courage or talent. The Abbassides, the family of the proph- 
et's uncle. Abbas, were numerous, prudent, and united : their 
partisans were chiefly in Persia, where Aboo Moslem, their 
chief support, first gave them dominion by the conquest of 
Khorassan. Persia was from east to west a perpetual scene 
of conflict between the rival parties of the white and the blacky 
as they were styled, from the colors of their ensigns. The 
Ommiyades unfurled the white banner of the prophet ; their 
rivals displayed the opposite hue. Ibrahim, the chief of the 
house of Abbas, was waylaid on his pilgrimage to Mecca by 
the troops of Damascus, and he expired in the dungeons of 
Haran : his brothers, Saffah and Almansor, escaped to Cufa. 
Saffah was there proclaimed khalif Mervan II., the Ommi- 
yade khalif, collected a large army, and met the host of Saflah 
on the banks of the Zab. The Abbasside troops were least 
in number ; but fortune favored them. Mervan fled to Egypt ; 
and in another engagement at Busir, on the banks of the Nile, 
he lost both life and empire. 750 

The unfortunate race of Ommiyah was now sought out 
and slaughtered. One youth alone, Abd-er-rahman, escaped 
the perquisitions of the Abbassides, and he fled to Africa. He 
was invited over to Spain by the friends and servants of his 
house. The governor, Yussuf, was forced to yield to his arms; 755. 
and from the city of Cordova the sceptre of the Ommiyades 
ruled during 283 years over the eight provinces into which 
Spain was divided. 



238 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART U. 

After a short reign, Saflah was succeeded by his brother 
Almansor. The royal residence had at first been Medina : 
Ali transferred it to Cufa ; and Moawiyah to Damascus. Per- 
sia was the chief seat of the Abbasside power ; and Ahnansor 

A. D. laid, on the eastern bank of the Tigris, the foundations of 

762. Bagdad, the royal seat of his posterity for five hundred years. 
The arms of Almansor were successful against the nomades 
of Toorkistan ; but his expedition against the Ommiyade khalif 
of Spain encountered only disgrace and defeat. 

The Greeks had taken advantage of the civil dissensions 
of the Moslems to recover a portion of their dominions. Mo- 
hadi, the successor of Almansor, retaliated during the reign 
of Irene and her son. Haroon, his second son, at the head 
of 95,000 Persians and Arabs, invaded Lesser Asia ; and from 
the heights of Scutari, within view of the imperial city, die- ' 
tated the terms of an ignominious peace. 

781. Five years after this war, Haroon-er-Rasheed, or the Justf 
ascended the throne of his father and his elder brother. Du- 
ring a reign of twenty-three years, this active prince eight 
times invaded the Grecian territories. In vain the emperor 
Nicephorus sent haughty defiances and denials of tribute ; 
in vain he assembled large armies : his troops fled in dismay 
before the disciplined bands of the commander of the faithful ; 
and the Byzantine gold was annually poured into the treasury 
of Bagdad. The memory of Haroon is renowned alike in 
both the East and West, as the hero of history and tale ; but 
it is indelibly stained by the slaughter of the princely and 
guiltless Barmecides. 

804. On his death his throne was disputed by his three sons; 
and, in the civil conflict, Al-Mamoon, the son of the filthy ' 
slave of the kitchen, triumphed over the issue of the haughty 
Zobeide. The memory of this prince is dear to literature 
and science, of which he was the zealous patron; and his 
peaceful acquisitions eclipse the martial deeds of his father. 

Under the first khalifs and the house of Ommiyah, no 
literature was attended to but the Koran and their native po- 
etry. Almansor began to encourage the acquisition of foreign 
literature : it was also patronized by Haroon ; but Al-Mamoon 
far outstripped all his predecessors in its cultivation. At his 
command, his agents and his ambassadors collected the best 
works of Grecian science, and his translators gave them an 
Arabic dress. The astronomy of Ptolemy, the medicine of 
Galen, the metaphysics of Aristotle, were read and commented 
on in the language of Arabia. The Ommiyade khalifs of 
Cordova, the Fatemites of Africa, vied with those of Bagdad- 
in the collecting of boqks, and the encouragement of science ; 



CHAP. III. CHARLEMAGNE AND HAROON-ER-RASHEED. 23,9 

and from the schools established by them proceeded chiefly 
the medicine, physics, and metaphysics of Europe during the 
middle ages. But the poets, the orators, and the historians 
of the Grecian republics, never learned to speak the language 
of Mohammedan despotism. ^ u 

In the reign of Al-Mamoon, Crete and Sicily were con- 82?' 
quered by the Moslems. A piratical fleet of ten or twenty 
galleys from Andalusia entered Alexandria at the solicitation 
of a rebellious faction. They spared neither friends nor foes ; 
they pillaged the city, and it required the forces and the pres- 
ence of the khalif Al-Mamoon to expel them. They ravaged 
the islands to the Hellespont. The fertility and riches of 
Crete attracted them : they invaded it with forty galleys. 
They entered and pillaged the country ; but as they returned 
to their vessels, they found them in flames by the orders of 
their chief, who exhorted them to seize and keep the fertile 
land. They obeyed from necessity, the island subrnitted, and 
for 138 years their depredations harassed the eastern em- 
pire. 

A youth had stolen a nun from a cloister in Sicily. He was 827 
sentenced to the loss of his tongue. He fled to Africa, and 
exhorted the Arabs to invade his country. They landed, in 
number, 700 horse, and 10,000 foot. They were repulsed be- 
fore the walls of Syracuse, and reduced to great straits, when 
they received a reinforcement from Spain. The western part 
of the island was quickly reduced, and Palermo became the 
Saracenic capital. Fifty years elapsed before Syracuse sub- 878. 
mitted, after a siege worthy of her old renown. The Gre- 
cian language and religion were eradicated throughout the 
island. From the ports of Sicily and Africa the Mohamme- 
dan fleets issued to ravage and pillage the cities and prov- 
inces of Italy. 

While the Arabs were engaged in the conquest of Sicily, 84C 
one of their fleets entered the Tiber, and the Moslems plun- 
dered the temples of St. Peter and St. Paul. Fortunately 
for the Romans, their pope died, and Leo IV., a man of the 
old Roman spirit, was chosen to succeed. By his care the 
city was fortified, and an alliance formed with Gaieta, Na- 
ples, and Salerno. Soon after, a large fleet of Saracens came 
from Africa, and cast anchor before the Tiber. The allies of 849. 
the pope soon appeared ; the engagement commenced, and a 
tempest finally decided it in favor of the Christians. The 
Saracen fleet was utterly destroyed, and those who escaped 
to shore were slaughtered, or reduced to slavery. 



240 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

CHAP. IV. 

DISSOLUTION OF THE GREAT EMPIRES OF THE EAST AND WEST. 

Empire of Charlemagne. 

814.* Charlemagne was succeeded in his dominions by his son 
Louis the Debonair, or good-natured. His eldest son, Pepin, 
had died before him, leaving- an illegitimate son, Bernard, who 
retained the kingdom of Italy, which his father had held. Re- 

817. belling against his uncle, he was sentenced to the loss of his 
eyes, which caused his death. Louis associated his eldest 
son, Lothaire, in the empire, and conferred Bavaria and Aqui- 
taine on liis two other sons ; but having had a son, Charles, 
by his second wife, Judith of Bavaria, he was naturally anxious 
to provide for him also. This could only be done at the ex- 
pense of Lothaire and his brothers. They rose in rebellion, 
and deposed their father : their discord caused his restoration. 

840. At his death, all his sons were in arms against each other. 
A bloody battle at Fontenoy, in Auxerre, forced them to come 
to an agreement, and the empire was, by the treaty of Ver- 
dun, divided among them. 

843. In this partition, Lothaire got Italy, Provence, and the 
country running along the Rhine, afterwards called Lorraine. 
Louis had all the German dominions eastward of the territo- 
ries of Lotha,ire ; and Charles, surnamed the Bald, had 
France. Pepin, their nephew, had Aquitaine, which his father 
had held : of this he was afterwards robbed by his uncle 
Charles. 

855. Lothaire, filled with remorse for his rebellions against his 
father, retired to a convent. His three sons took arms to di- 

859. vide their inheritance. By the treaty of Orbe (in the Vaudois,) 
Louis got the crown of the Csesars, Italy, and Rhastia ; Lo- 
thaire II., Burgundy, Alsatia, and Lorraine ; Charles had 
Provence. 

868. Lothaire II. dying the victim of a lawless amour, without 
legitimate issue, his two uncles made a treaty of partition of 
his dominions, which was finally decided in favor of the king 

879. of Germany. Lothaire II. had already divided with his 

863. brother, Louis II., the dominions of Charles of Provence, who 

875. had died without heirs ; and on the death of Louis 11. Rhsetia 
came to the king of Germany ; but his younger brother, the 
king of France, contrived to make himself master of Italy 
and the imperial crown. 

g7g The two brothers soon died. Louis the Stammerer suc- 
ceeded his father, Charles the Bald ; but followed him to the 
tomb within half a year after his accession. The legitimacy 







21 



241 



CHAP. IV. DISSOLUTION OF THE GREAT EMPIRES. 243 

of his children was doubted ; and in a council of Burg-undiari 
bishops, held at Geneva, the sovereignty of that country was 
offered to Boson, who was married to Imogene, daughter of a. n, 
Louis IL, and he was crowned king of Burgundy by the 879. 
archbishop at Lyons. 

Charles the Fat, the son of Louis of Germany, united Italy 880 
to his German dominions ; and on the death of the elder sons 
of Louis the Stammerer, and the minority of their brother 
Charles the Simple, he was made king of France, and Boson 
received his kingdom of him as a fief The empire was now 
once more under one head ; but Charles becoming deranged, 
he was deposed, and the unity of the empire of tlie Franks 888. 
dissolved for ever. 

The German dominions of Charles were taken possession 
of by Arnulf, the illegitimate son of his brother Carloman, a 
prince deeply imbued with the best spirit of the Carlovingi- 
ans; but he died, leaving a son of only seven years. Eudes, 
count of Paris, which he had gallantly defended against the 
Normans, was chosen king of France ; but on his death it 
came to the rightful but incapable heir, Charles the Simple. 
After the death of Boson, two kings reigned in Burgundy; 
his son Louis, and Rodolph, son of the powerful Count Con- 
rad, and that kingdom was divided, never to be reunited. In 
Italy, Widen, duke of Spoleto, and Berenger, duke of Friuli, 
contended with each other for the restoration of the kingdom 
of the Lombards, and discord and turbulence agitated the 
whole country. 

Such was the internal state of the empire of Charlemagne 
at the close of the ninth century : externally it was harassed 
by the Arabs, the Hungarians, and the Northmen. 

The Hungarians. 

Beyond the Ural mountains a tribe of Turks, it is thought, 
had intermixed with the Finns, the original race of Northern 
Asia and Europe. Pressed on from the East by other tribes 
set in motion by war or want, they broke up their camps, and 
advanced towards the West. They forced their way through 
the Russian tribes, penetrated the passes of Mount Krapak, 
and spread themselves over Pannonia, their future country. 
They called and still call themselves' Majars : by the Euro- 
peans they were termed Turks and Hungarians. Their gov- 
ernment had been hitherto administered by a council of Voi- 
vodes, or hereditary chiefs ; they now chose a sovereign in 
the person of Almus, the father of Arpad. 

The empire of Charlemagne had extended to Transylva 
tiia. The king of the Moravians, who dwelt in western 



244 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

Hungary, refused obedience to Arnulf, king of Germany, 
and even invaded his dominions. Unable to reduce him, 
i. D Arnulf invited the aid of the Hungarians, and the Moravian 
340 prince was speedily humbled. Arnulf being succeeded by 
his infant son Louis IV., all restraint, which gratitude or fear 
had laid on the Hungarians, was removed. They rushed 
into and wasted Bavaria, overthrew the Christians at Augs- 
burg, swept over Swabia and Franconia, spread to the Baltic, 
and laid the city of Bremen in ashes. During a period of 
more than thirty years Germany paid tribute to these barr 
barians. 

The Hungarians passed the Rhine, and ravaged southern 
France to the Pyrenees. Italy attracted them : they encamp- 
ed on the Brenta ; but, dreading the strength of the country, 
they asked permission to retire. The king of Italy, Beren- 
ger, proudly refused, and the lives of 20,000 men were the 
penalty of his rashness. Pavia was soon in flames, and all 
Italy, to the point of Reggio, was ravaged. The Bulgarians, 
a Slavonic tribe, had been converted to Christianity, and 
they formed the north-western barrier of the eastern empire. 
Their resistance was overcome, and the rapid bands of the 
Hungarians were soon seen before the gates of Constantino- 
ple. By arts and presents they were induced to retire. 

The ravages of the Hungarians extended through a period 
of nearly half a century (889 — 934). The valor of the Saxon 
princes, Henry the Fowler and his son Otho the Great, at 
ength delivered Europe from them. 

The Northmen. 

Scandinavia had been originally peopled by the Finnic 
race. In very remote ages the Goths, whose primitive seat 
was, probably, the great central mountain-range of Asia, had 
penetrated thither, and expelled the less warlike Finns. We 
have already seen them recross the Baltic, and eventually 
establish themselves in Spain and Italy. Everj^where they 
appear as conquerors. In Scandinavia they were generally 
divided into small independent states : their land was poor * 
they had little agriculture and less trade to occupy them 
they loved war, were bold mariners, and early began to com- 
mit depredations on each other and on strangers. 

In this period, Gorm the Old in Denmark and Harold Fair- 
hair in Norway had reduced several of the independent 
chieftains of these countries, and established their respective 
monarchies. Several of the high-spirited reguli scorned to 
own as masters those whom they had regarded as equals ; 
they embarked in their ships, sought and colonized the dreary 



CflAP. IV DISSOLUTION OF THE GREAT EMPIRES. 245 

shores of Iceland or the Feroe, Shetland, and Orkney islands, 
whence they annually ravaged the coasts of their forsaken 
country. By these and by the younger sons of the Yarls 
(earls) of the north, piracy was gradually committed on a 
more extensive scale than hitherto : the coasts of England 
and France were now richer and more inviting, and annually 
the fleets of the Northmen spread desolation along them. 

Towards the time of Charlemagne their depredations on 
these countries had begun. The date of their appearance 
in England is the year 787, and shortly afterwards they rav- 
aged the coast of France. During the reign of Louis they 
were more frequent in their visits. The unsettled state of 
the country in the reign of Charles the Bald favoring them, 
they grew more bold, sailed up the navigable rivers, and 
plundered the interior. In 872 they pillaged Anglers ; in 
888 they laid siege to Paris, which, but for the efforts of 
Gosselin, the bishop, and Eudes, the count of that city, would 
have been their prey. But the number and boldness of their 
invasions continually increasing, Charles the Simple was 
finally forced to cede to Rolf, or Rollo, one of their leaders, a. d 
the large province since called from them Normandy. This 918. 
was a wise measure, for Rolf and his subjects embraced the 
Christian religion, and guarded the kingdom from farther in- 
vasion. 

In England, where they were called Danes, they harassed 
the coasts in a similar manner, and gradually formed perma- 
nent settlements. Even the great Alfred was obliged to yield 
to them the kingdoms of Northumbria and East Anglia, and 
at length they placed monarchs of their nation on the throne 
of England. 

But the Northmen also extended their name and their 
power eastwards. The coasts of the Baltic were among the 
scenes of their depredations ; and' the Russians, a Slavonian 
tribe, who had subdued the original natives of its eastern 
shores, admired and feared them. As allies they employed 
them in their wars against the tribes of the interior. These 
Varangians, as they were called, like their Anglo-Saxon 862. 
brethren, made themselves masters of the people that invited 
their aid, and Ruric, one of their chiefs, established a dynasty 
which endured for seven hundred years. The house of Ru- 
ric, at first depending on the arms of the Varangians for sup- 
port and safety, new adventurers continually flocked to them, 
and were rewarded by grants of lands and subjects; but 
when they felt themselves firmly seated, they found they 
eould dispense with these expensive auxiliaries, and Vladimir 
I. recommended to them the service of the Greek emperora, 
21* 



246 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II, 

as more profitable. They followed his advice, and from that 
period till the end of the empire, the Varangians were the 
faithful guards of the throne of the Byzantine Csesars. 

France. 

The power and authority of the Carlovingian princes con- 
tinually decreased. France was now divided among several 
dukes and counts, who, though acknowledging themselves 
vassals of the crown, exercised all the rights of independent 
sovereigns. Louis IV. and Lothaire, the successors of Charles 
the Simple, though of more energetic character, were unable 
to restore the royal dignity ; and on the death of Louis V., a 
feeble youth, though his uncle Charles duke of Lorraine was 
heir, Hugh Capet, son of Hugh duke of France, Orleans, and 
Burgundy, and descended from Eudes and Robert the Strong, 
who had defended Paris from the Northmen, had himself 
1^. D. crowned king at Rheims, and when Charles -of Lorraine came 
987. in arms to claim his right, he met with defeat and captivity. 

Thus, after a period of 235 years from the deposition of 
Chilperic (752) to the coronation of Hugh Capet (987), the 
Carlovingian, like the Merovingian dynasty, expired by its 
own feebleness. Would it not appear that great families, like 
fruit-trees, become with time effete, and incapable of pro- 
ducing the similitude of those powers to which they owed 
their original elevation 1 So little reason is there to be proud 
of a long line of noble ancestry ! 

Hugh, though king of France, was in reality only master 
of his own demesnes, and feudal superior of the great vassals 
of the crown. Even this superiority was not acknowledged 
south of the Loire, and in his own fiefs of Paris and Orleans, 
which by his accession were regarded as reunited to the 
crown, he and his successors were frequently defied and 
made war on by their refractory barons. He used the pre- 
caution of getting his son Robert crowned during his own 
lifetime, a plan which was followed by his two successors, 
Robert and Henry I. Under the reign of Philip L the 
monarchy was grown sufficiently strong to dispense with this 
custom. 

Germany — House of Saxony. 

On the death of Louis, son of Arnulf, the German branch 
of the Carlovingians was extinct. Charles the Simple, king 
of France, was doubtless of that race ; but the present situa- 
tion of Germany demanded a sovereign of more energetic 
character. The Germans were divided into five nations, 
Franks, Swabians, Bavarians, Saxons, Lorrainers. These 




247 



CHAP. rV. DISSOLUTION OF THE GREAT EMPIRES. 24^ 

nations met to appoint a successor, and the choice of the as- ^. ^ 
sembly fell upon Conrad of Franconia, descended through 911 
females from Charlemagne. 

Conrad did not long enjoy his dignity. Feeling the neces- 
sity there was for the sceptre being grasped by a vigorous 
hand, he sought not to perpetuate it in his own family ; but 
when dying, he recommended, instead of his brother, Henry 
duke of Saxony, also descended on the female side from 
Charlemagne, to the choice of the electors. 

Henry, surnamed the Fowler, was son of Otho, who had 91^ 
reduced Thuringia, and extended his dominion to the Elbe. 
This able and politic prince was at first obliged to continue 
the tribute to the Hungarians ; but he surrounded the hitherto 
open towns and villages with walls and ditches, obliged every 
tenth man in each district to reside in them, gave them privi- 
leges, and encouraged industry and arts of every kind: the 
courts of justice were held in them, and they were the de- 
positories of a third of the produce of the lands of the district. 
He established the march of Meissen against the Slaves, and 
erected bishoprics there for their conversion. Thus prepared, 
when the years of truce with the Hungarians were expired; 
he suffered them to come with arms to demand tribute ; and 
he rose from his bed of sickness to meet them, and drove 934 
them out of his dominions with slaughter. 

On the death of Henry, the princes and people assembled 936. 
at Aachin, and elected his son Otho, deservedly styled the 
Great. It being a principle of the German empire, that an 
emperor should neither retain a fief nor add one to the domain, 
Otho bestowed Saxony on Herman, a brave warrior ; but he 
sought to indemnify himself by granting archbishoprics and 
dukedoms to his own family ; a policy that availed him but 
little, as they were frequently in rebellion against him. 

In the discord that pervaded Italy at this period, Adelaide, 
widow of Lothaire, son of Hugh of Provence, who had been 
king of Italy, invoked the aid of Otho against Berenger II., 
who had seized on the throne. Otho crossed the Alps, married 
Adelaide, and Berenger did homage to him for his kingdom. 952. 
Troubles afterwards breaking out in that country, Otho, at 
the call of Pope John XII., again descended from the Alps, 
deposed Berenger, and was crowned by the Lombards. The 
next year he visited Rome, and was there received and 
crowned as Charlemagne had been. But the pope, seeing 
the power of his ally, sought to raise up enemies against him. 
Otho sent ambassadors to complain, and at last came himself 
to Rome. The pope fled, and the people swore never to re- 963. 
ceive a pope without the consent of Otho and his successors. 



250 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

Three days after, the emperor in an assembly of bishops and 
nobles, had John deposed, and Leo VIII. chosen in his place. 
The party of John was, however, stil] strong: the Romans 
rose against the Germans and their friends. Otho came a 
third time to Rome: an injured husband had slain John; 
famine forced the Romans to surrender ; and thus originated 
the right of the emperor to nominate the pope. 

During the reign of Otho I. the Hungarians, assisted by 
domestic faction, penetrated to the heart of Flanders. Al 
the forces of Germany and all the aids of superstition were 
arrayed against this dreadful enemy ; and the neighborhood 

^ jj of Augsburg, which some years before had witnessed theii 

955. triumph, now beheld the final ruin of the Hungarian might. 

974. Otho II., son of Otho the Great, married Theophano, step- 
daughter of the Byzantine emperor, Nicephorus Phocas, 
who made over to him all the imperial rights and claims on 
Lower Italy. Otho was an able prince ; but he had many 
enemies to contend with, and sometimes endured the mortifi 
cation of defeat. 

983. Otho III., educated by his mother Theophano, was a prince 
of amiable temper and cultivated mind. He loved to reside 
in Italy ; but the turbulence of the Romans gave him con- 
tinued uneasiness and occupation. During his minority they 
rebelled against him and the pope; but when he came of 
age he besieged and took the city. He treated it with se- 
verity, and hung the consul Crescentius, the leader of the 
popular party. 

i*J02. Otho dying without issue, his kinsman, Henry, duke of 
Bavaria, was elected to the vacant dignity. Henry II. was 
successful in his foreign wars. He passed less of his time in 
Italy than his predecessors had done. With him ended the 

1024. Saxon line of emperors. 

Italy. 

The great vassals had in Italy succeeded in making them- 
selves independent. Of these the principal were the dukes 
of Benevento, Tuscany, and Spoleto, the marquises of Ivrea, 
Susa, and Friuli: the pope ruled the turbulent Romans: 
Apulia and Calabria were governed by the Catapan of the 
eastern emperors : the repul)lics of Amalfi and Naples ac- 
knowledged their supremacy ; and Salerno and Capua were 
under their own princes. 

When the Carlovingian princes had lost their power, the 
dukes of Spoleto and Friuli contended for, the kingdom ol 
Italy. Berenger of Friuli governed with the title of king, 
but amidst continual factions, for thirtv-'six years. His adver- 



CHAP. TV. DISSOLUTION OF THE GREAT EMPIRES. 251 

saries called in Rudolf II., kin^ of Burgundy. In a battle 
Berenger defeated him; but in the pursuit, Boniface of Spo- a. d 
leto, Rudolf's nephew, fell on him ; and Rudolf turning, Be- 923 
renger was defeated, and soon after murdered. Rudolf was 
now made king of Italy, but did not long enjoy his crown. 
Hugh, count of Provence, who had driven the grandson of 
Boson out of the kingdom of Aries, laid claim to Italy ; and, 
supported by the clergy and the great, he forced Rudolf to 926. 
resign, and accept a part of the kingdom of Aries in exchange. 
Hugh reigned over and oppressed the nobles of Italy for six- 
teen years. Berenger II., of the house of Ivrea, succeeded, 
and was nearly as tyrannical ; and, as we have seen, the aid 
of Otho the Great was invoked against his oppression, and 945. 
the German monarchs became kings of Italy. 

The dukes of Spoleto and Tuscany generally directed the 
election of the popes. Virtue and piety were little considered 
in the candidates : political motives and female influence de- 
cided each election. The infamous Theodora and her daugh- 
ter Marozia disposed of the chair of St. Peter at their pleasure : 
mere boys were chosen : sons succeeded their fathers : scanda- 
lous vices disgraced the heads of the church ; and some suffered 
shameful deaths. Among the charges against John XII. were 
several which would disgrace the most licentious layman in 
the most barbarous age of history. 

The duchy of Benevento had been greatly diminished by 
the tbrmation of the states of Salerno and Capua ; and at 
this time the Normans established themselves at Aversa, a 
town given to them by the duke of Naples.. The Saracens 
possessed Sicily, and had settlements in Calabria. 

England. 
Egbert had united all England under one sceptre ; and, in- 828 
ternal warfare being thus checked, the country might have 
advanced in civilization and the arts of peace ; but the Danes 832 
now began to visit the coasts with large fleets, carrying havoc 
and desolation wherever they appeared. The reigns of his 
successors are chiefly marked by their struggles with these 87.1 
formidable foes. When Alfred mounted the throne, they 
were masters of the greater part of England. This monarch, 
one of the ablest that ever adorned a diadem, spent a great 
part of his reign in doubtful conflict with them, which ended 
by the Danes embracing Christianity, and Alfred ceding to 
them Northumbria and East Anglia. Peace being restored, 
the wise king turned all his thoughts to the formation of such 
in.stitutions and regulations as might increase the power, the 
wealth, and the civilization of his subjects. He established 



252 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

schools, regulated the police, built ships of war, and encour- 
aged trade and navigation Three able princes, Edward. 
Athelstan, and Edmund, pursued the victories of Alfred : under 
them the monarchy became coextensive with the present 
England ; and Edgar the Peaceable was the most powerful 
of the Anglo-Saxon kings. 

The Danes still continued their hostilities. The successors 
of Edgar were feeble, the great subjects intractable, the Danes 
in the kingdom numerous : the custom was introduced of 
buying them off, and then of employing the Normans against 
tiiem. In the reign of Ethelred II. the savage and fatal mea- 
sure of murdering the Danes throughout England was adopted. 
Filled with rage at this base treachery, Sueno, king of Den- 
mark, invaded and conquered the kingdom. His son Canute 
(Knut) was king of both Denmark and England, and he is 
justly placed in the list of great princes. He was succeeded 
by his sons Hardicanute and Harold. On the death of the 
last, the English nation returned to the Anglo-Saxon line, in 
the person of Edward, surnamed the Confessor, an amiable 
Dut feeble prince. 

An injudicious practice had been introduced of giving the 
gx>vernment of large provinces, the former kingdoms, to par- 
ticular noblemen. Hitherto each shire had been governed by 
its alderman, and the moderate size of a shire prevented ita 
governor acquiring any very formidable power. But a man 
who wielded the forces of such a state as Mercia or Wessex, 
might easily defy his sovereign. Godwin, a man of ability, 
had gained for himself and his sons the government of seve- 
ral provinces ; and on the death of Edward, his son Harold, a 
man of many noble qualities, had himself chosen king by the 
Witena-gemot, or great council of the nation, to the exclu- 
sion of the lawful heir. He was opposed by his own brother 
Tosti, by the king of Norway, and by a still more formidable 
rival, William duke of Normandy. The former two he van- 
quished : in the battle of Hastings he lost to the latter both 
life and crown. 

Russia. 

Russia under her Scandinavian princes became known to 
Europe. The Russians appeared at Constantinople at first' as 
traders, exchanging the furs, hides, bees'-wax and honey of 
the North for the productions and manufactures of the em- 
pire. Their cupidity was excited, and they sought to take by 
force the wealth of which they got but scanty supplies by 
trade. Their fleets repeatedly assailed Constantinople, and 
their armies invaded the empire and Bulgaria. Nicephorut 




22 



263 



CHAP. IV. DISSOLUTION OF THE GREAT EMPIRES. 255 

fought in vain against them, but the heroic John Zimisces 
vindicated the honor of the empire and the wrongs of Bulga- 
ria, and the Russian grand-duke Svatoslof and his army, sur- ^ d. 
rounded by the galleys and the legions, was forced to surren- 973. 
der, and retire on honorable terms. 

Olga, the mother of Svatoslof, a princess of mind as mas- 955. 
culine as the Catherines or Elizabeths, had come to Constan- 
tinople and received baptism. At Kiov and Novogorod she 
persisted in her new faith. Her grandson Vladimir, at first a 980 
zealous votary of the gods of his country, at length embraced 
the religion of his grandmother, and a marriage with Anna, . 
sister of Theophano, wife of Otho 11. , confirmed him in his 
new faith. Olga had sought to improve her country: she 
made roads, built bridges, and introduced social order. Vladi- 
mir erected schools, opened new sources of trade, had rela- 
'tions with foreign courts, was active in the introduction of 
the Christian religion, — was, in fact, the Peter of the tenth 
century. 

Yaroslof, son of Vladimir, was the legislator of Russia. 1015 
He caused books to be translated from the Greek. He was 
the ally of the German emperors against the Hungarians, 
and his daughter Anna was married to Henry I. of France. 
Alexius Commenus, the Byzantine em^ieror, sent the impe- 
rial insignia to the grandson of Yaroslof, Vladimir Monoma- 
chus, and Kiov swore always to choose the Tsar from his 
house. 

Constantinople. 

Theophilus, son of Michael the Stammerer, was a virtuous 829. 
prince, and an enemy to the images. On his death his widow 
Theodora, like Irene, during the minority of her son Michael 842. 
III., finally re-established them. Michael was a weak priru-e ; 
but his uncle Caesar Bardas administered the empire with 867 
prudence and ability. Basilius murdered them both, and 
mounted the throne. His government was vigorous and ac- 886. 
tive. His son Leo followed his maxims. The sceptre passed 911. 
to the infant son of Leo, Constantino Porphyrogenitus, under 
whose name first his uncle Alexander and then his mother 
Zoe governed. By perjury Romanus Lacopenus obtained the 919 
direction of affairs ; but he guided them with ability. Con- 
Btantine, apparently devoted to books and wine, managed to 
deprive Romanus of his power, and became sole ruler. Ro- 959 
manus H. reigned after him with little credit. 

Nicephorus Phocas distinguished himself in w^ar against 
the Persians, the Saracens of Crete, and the Russians. His 
successor, John ZimJsces, was the conqueror of the Russian 969. 



256 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TI. 

4, D. duke Svatoslof. The sons of Romanus II., Basil II. and Con- 

975. stantine VIII., reigned in conjunction, with reputation. Basil 
completely broke the power of the Bulgarians, and dying after 

1025. a reign of fifty years, left the sole dominion to his brother, 
who left it to his daughter Zoe and her husband, the patric.an 

1028. Romanus Argyrus, a man of some ability. Romanus was un- 
fortunate in a battle against the Saracens at Aleppo. The 

1034. empress fell in love with a handsome youth. Romanus was 
murdered, and her favorite raised to the throne under the 
name of Michael IV. ; but, goaded by remorse, he abandoned- 
the palace to shut himself up in a convent. The empress 

*041. then placed his cousin Michael Calaphates on the throne. 
Finding him disobedient to her will, she dethroned and blinded 

i042.him, and then gave the dignity to Constantine Monoma- 
chus, who had been her first love, who governed with order 

1054. and regularity. On his death, Theodora, the sister of Zoe 
(now dead) seized the reigns ol government, and held them 

1056. for a short time with no steady hand. With her ended the 
dynasty of Basil I., which had occupied the throne nearly two 
centuries. 

Michael VI., a soldier, was chosen emperor, and gave one 
among the many examples there are of the unfitness of a 
man for the supreme station who may have been distinguished 
in an inferior one. He was dethroned, and Isaac Comnenus 

1057. put in his place. Isaac ruled with wisdom, vigor, and justice ; 
but bodily infirmity made him retire after a short reign. Con- 

1059. stantine Ducas, his successor, was just, but no Soldier. Hia 

1068. widow married and raised to the throne Romanus Diogenes, 

a man of noble mind and military talent. He warred against 

the Seljookian Turks ; but by the treachery of his nobles he 

fell into the hands of the sultan Alp Arslan, by whom he was 

honorably treated and set at liberty. On his return he found 

1071. treachery, revolt, and murder awaiting him. Michael VII., 

the son of Ducas, was weak and incapable ; he was the slave 

of a vicious minister, and he took orders, and attained to dig- 

1078. nity in the church. Nicephorus Botoniates was a soldier, but 

1081. unfit to be emperor. He gave way to the dynasty of the 

Comnenians, with whom a new state of things commenced. 

Decline of the Arabian Empire — Africa. 

789. The Abbasside khalifs had never possessed Spain. In the 
reign of Haroon-er-Rasheed, Edris, a descendant of Fatema, 
fled from Arabia to the extreme west, and declared his inde- 
pendence. His son, also named Edris, built the city of Fez 
the capital of a state which soon became populous and flour 
ishing. 



CHAP. IV. DISSOLUTION OF THE GREAT EMPIRES. 257 

During the reign of Edris 11. of Fez, Ibrahim, the son of a. d 
Aglab, governor of Cairoan, one of the lieutenants of ITaroon- 805- 
er-Rasheed, established an independent dominion in the an- 
cient territory of Carthage, of which Tunis became the capital. 

About a century later, Mahadee Obeid Allah, a real or pre- 908. 
tended descendant of Fatema, founded a state on the coast of 
Africa, of which the city of Mahadiah, built by him on a pen- 
insula, running out into the Mediterranean, was the capital. 
He made war on and defeated both the Aglabites and the 
Edrisites, whose kingdoms lay to the west of his, and added 
their territories to those he already possessed. 

Moez-ladin-Allah, the great-grandson of Mahadee, had 969. 
wells sunk in the desert, and then marched an army to Egypt, 
which had ceased to obey the khalifs. He took possession of 
that country with little opposition, where he founded the city 
of Cairo (Al Cahira) henceforth its capital. His reign was 
one of mildness and gentleness. Armies conducted by skilful 
and victorious generals conquered Syria, and Damascus and 
Jerusalem were among the cities which obeyed the khalif of 
Egypt, whose dynasty — the Fatemite — ruled for two centu- 
ries from the Euphrates to the deserts of Cairoan. 

Moez, aware of the impossibility of retaining distant prov- 971 
inces, separated by sandy deserts from the seat of govern- 
ment, wisely abandoned all thoughts of seeking to retain his 
conquests on the north-western coast of Africa. He therefore 
gave up to Yoossef Belkin, the son of Zeiri, the western con- 
quests of Mahadee. Zeiri was of a noble Arab family, and 
had headed a troop of warriors, who were solely devoted to 
him. His dynasty — the Zeirides — reigned till 1148 over the 
north-western coast during 177 years. 

A prophet, named Abdallah, rose among the tribes subject 1056. 
to the Zeirides. He taught Islam in greater purity. His 
followers became numerous.' Under the command of Aboo 
Bekr, son of Omar, they took arms to spread the faith, and 
carried on successful wars against the princes of Fez, Tan- 
giers, and the other states. Yoossef, the successor of Aboo 
Bekr, founded Morocco at some springs of water, and it be- 
came during his lifetime the capital of a state reaching to the 1069 
Straits of Gibraltar. Almoravites was the appellation of the 
followers of Abdallah : they led a pastoral life, and their 
princes Yoossef and his successors were both powerful and 
peaceable. 

Decline of the Arabian Empire — Asia. 

Thus were Spain, Africa, and Syria lost to the house of 
Abbas, and at the same time their eastern possessions were 
rapidly reduced in extent. 
22* 



258 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IL 

4. D. Taher, an able general, had essentially served Mamoon in 

813. the contest with his brother. He was dismissed in honorable 
exile to command in the province of KJiorassan ; but here he 
made himself independent, and his descendants, the Taher- 
ites, to the fourth generation, governed that province with 
wisdom and justice. 

872. The Taherite dynasty was overthrown by the Suffaree, 
founded by Yacoob ben Leis, the son of a pewterer in Seistan 
(hence the name Suffaree,) who abandoned his trade for that 
of a robber. An accident gave occasion to his being em- 
ployed by the prince of Seistan, in whose service he led an 
army which he turned against his master, whom he sent pris- 
oner to Bagdad : obtaining in reward the government of that 
province, he gradually made himself master of Khorassan, 
and nearly all Persia. The khalif instigated Ismael Samanee, 
a Turkish chief, to seize on Transoxiana. Amer, the brother 
and successor of Yacoob, marched against him ; but was de- 
feated, taken, and sent to Bagdad, where, after some years' 
confinement, he was put to death. Transoxiana, Bulch, Kho- 
rassan, and Seistan now formed the dominions of the Sama- 
nians. 

892. The Arabian princes of the tribe of Hamadan made them- 
selves masters of, and held for 109 years (892 — 1001) Meso- 
potamia, with the cities of Mosul and Aleppo. They were 
extolled by their poets for their beauty and their noble quali- 
ties. Their history presents the usual series of crimes. 

900 The power of the Samanee princes extended over the north 
of Persia. The south obeyed the Dilemee, so called from 
their native village Dilem, as they were styled Buyah from 
one of their ancestors. A fisher of Dilem, Abul-Shujah-al- 
Buyah, entered the service of the governor of his native prov- 
ince. Under the conqueror and successor of that governor, 
Ali Buyah, the son of Shujah, rose to high military command ; 
and he defeated Yacoot, the governor of Isfahan, and gained 
thereby great wealth and reputation. Ali pursued and again 
defeated Yacoot, and made himself master of Fars, Kerman, 
Khuzistan, and Irak. He advanced to Bagdad, and obliged 
the khalif to bestow on him the government of Fars and Irak, 
and to make his younger brother Ahmed his vizier ; his sec- 
ond brother Hussun acted under himself. 

Ahmed dethroned the khalif, and raised Mothi to his place 
over whom he exercised unlimited authority during his life 
Ali dying, universally regretted, was succeeded by his brother 
Hussun, who left his authority to his son, the able and excel 
lent Azed-e-Dowlat, who united in his person the offices of 
vizier to the khalif and vicerov of Fars and Irak. 




William III. of England. 



259 



JHAP. IV. DISSOLUTION OF THE GREAT EMPIRES. 261 

After the death of Azed, one of the brightest characters 
«n oriental history, the power of the Dilemee gradually de- 
clined. Mahmood of Ghizni stripped them of all their pos- 
sessions but Fars and Kerman. They retained these and the 
office of Ameer-ul-Omrah {chief of the nobles) conferred on 
Ali Buyah, which gave them authority over the country round a. d 
Bagdad, till that capital was taken by Toghrul-beg-Seljookee. 1055 

Causes of the Decline of the Power of the Khalifs. 

An obvious cause of the dissolution of the empire of the 
Arabs was its extent, the consequent distance of several of 
the provinces from the seat of empire, and the absolute 
power with which the lieutenants of a despot must be in- 
vested. Hence the assumption of independence was easy, 
the means of punishing slight ; no principle of loyalty bind- 
ing the subject to the sovereign. Thus Spain was lost at 
once, Africa speedily afterwards. 

But in the case of the Abbassides there were some particular 
causes. Like their predecessors, their title was bad. The 
descendants of the son-in-law and earliest disciple of the 
prophet were naturally regarded as having a better claim to 
the khalifat than those of any other branch of the family. 
The rights of All's family were still, therefore, openly or 
secretly maintained by a numerous party. We have seen 
how easily Edris, and afterwards Mahadee, founded empires. 
The Fatemite khalifs of the latter house always affected to 
regard themselves as the rightful successors of the prophet. 
These khalifs were, it is said, at the head of a secret society, 
whose object was the overthrow of the khalifat of Bagdadj 
and its missionaries continually pervaded the dominions of 
the house of Abbas, making converts to the claims of Ali. 
The various sectaries who aimed at private aggrandizement 
frequently put forward these claims, and thereby attracted 
followers. The Ismailites were a sect founded expressly on 
this principle, and out of them arose the society of the As- 
sassins, one of the most dreadful scourges of the East. 

Yet the house of Abbas might, perhaps, have retained the 
empire of Asia, were it not that, like the contemporary Car- 
lovingians, the Abbassides gradually degenerated, and fell 
into weakness and incapacity, and at the same time formed a 
prsetorian guard. Motassem, the eighth khalif of this family, 
with whom its glory expired, perceiving how the valor and 841 
virtues of the Arabs had decayed, adopted the plan of forming 
a body-guard from the martial hordes of the Turks who dvy^elt 
beyond the Jihon. Their youths, taken in war or purchased 
as slaves, were trained to arms, and instructed in the prin- 



262 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IL 

ciples of Islam. Motassem collected 50,00( of them around 
his throne at Bagdad. Their tumultuous conduct incensed 
the citizens, and he and they retired to Samara, a city twelve 
leagues from Bagdad, on the Tigris. Motawakkel, the son 

i. D. of Motassem, was a cruel tyrant : he favored and relied solely 

861- on his Turkish guards, and they murdered him at the insti- 
gation of hi« son Mostanser, whose remorse for his crime 
abridged his life. The guards had now felt their own power ; 
their numbers were kept up by regular recruiting in Turkis- 

862. tan : they forced Mosteyoo, uncle of Mostanser, to whom 
they gave the throne, to surrender to them the right, not 
only of nominating their own commander, but the emir-ul- 
omra of the empire. They treated the commander of the 
faithful with every indignity and insult ; and these unhappy 
princes were by them beaten with clubs, dragged by the feet, 
and exposed almost naked to the burning rays of the sun. 

907. Mohtadi Billah made a bold effort to curb them. He seized 
Moones, their commander, one of his ablest generals, and 
when they assailed the palace, flung his head out to them. 
They, however, burst in, and the unhappy khalif expired be- 
neath their feet. His brother and successor Moktader, to 
rid himself of them, placed them, as his best troops, on the 
different frontiers, and thereby hastened their becoming in- 
dependent. 

868. A Turkish governor of Egypt, named Tooloon, had some 
time before made himself independent. He had, it is said, 
found a large treasure, and thereon raised his power. His 
son and successor Ahmed was the father of the poor, but in- 
exorable in the punishment of crime, and 18,000 persons 
were executed during his reign. The commander of the 
faithful, Motedad, married Cotr-en-neda {Deiodrop) the daugh- 
ter of Khemeruyah, son of Ahmed, and on her road to Bag- 
dad, she found each evening a tent splendid, and furnished 
as the palace of her father, prepared for her reception. Ha- 
roon, the grandson of Ahmed, fell in defence of his kingdom, 

905. and with him ended the dynasty of the Tooloonides. Egypt 
was reunited to the dominions of the khalif Mohtadi Billah. 
But twenty-nine years aflerwards another Turk, Akhsheed, 

934. separated it anew, and it never again obeyed the khalifs of 
Bagdad. 

The Gasnevides. 

997, Sebuktajee, a slave of a minister of the Samanians, by 
valor and prudence obtained the government of the city and 
district of Gasna or Ghizni. His son Mahmood gradually 
extended his power from the Caspian to the Indus, and the 



CHAP. IV. DISSOLUTION OP THE GREAT EMPIRES. 263 

4 ilif honored him with the title of Sultan. The power of 
Mahmood increased with eastern rapidity. India attracted 
his cupidity : since the days of Seleucus Nicator she had not 
been penetrated to any extent by a foreign conqueror : she 
abounded in treasure ; her people were un warlike : Mahmood 
and his Moslems poured down on her from her northern fron- 
tier : he reached the Ganges ; resistance was ineffectual ; all 
submitted. His religious zeal was displayed in the destruc- 
tion of the idols of India, and an incredible treasure rewarded 
his holy warfare. Twelve times did the Gasnevide monarch 
march to the pillage of this rich and feeble country. 

Spain. 
Family dissensions and the revolt of governors diminished 
the power of the dynasty fourded by Abd-er-rahman, and 
the Christians gradually extended their possessions from the 
mountains to the plain. a. d. 

After a contest of two hundred years a Christian kingdom 914. 
was founded under Ordoiio, of which Leon was the capital. 
The laws of the Goths were re-established ; and this was the 
commencement of the heroic age of Spain, when she put 
forth every manly virtue, and fought with religious zeal, 
patriotic feeling, and knightly honor. 

A county had been formed at Burgos by Fernando Gon- 933. 
zales. On the failure of iiis posterity it was formed into the 
kingdom, of Castile in favor of Fernando, son of Sanchez, 1033 
king of Navarre. This last kingdom had been formed by the 
descendants of the valiant Gascon, count Acnor, who had 
(831) crossed the Pyrenees to conquer lands from the infidels. 
They had also made themselves masters of the fruitful plains 
of Catalonia. 

At the time when the empire of the khalifs of Cordova 
was falling to pieces, almost the entire of the Christian states 
were united under Sanchez of Navarre. But he again sepa- 
rated them, giving only Navarre to his eldest son, leaving 
Castile to Fernando, who had acquired Leon by marriage, 
and forming in the mountains about the little stream of the 
Aragon, the kingdom so denominated for his natural son Ra- 
mirez; a kingdom which, by wise laws and able rulers, 
eclipsed all in the Peninsula. 

Bernhard, of the family of the dukes of Aquitaine, whom 
Charlemagne had made count of Barcelona, became, in a 864. 
great measure, independent : his son Winfred became com- 
pletely so. Count Raymond Berenger obtained by marriage 1137. 
the kingdom of Aragon. 

All these sovereigns pressed on the Mohammedan emirs, 



264 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART 11. 

A D. who were less united. The latter, unable to withstand, 

1086. called over Yoossef-ben-Takhfin the Almoravide, who had 

just founded the empire of Morocco. He came, repulsed the 

Christians ; and all Spain, south of the mountains of Castile, 

was united under his dominion. 



CHAP. V. 

INCREASE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 

Italy. — The Normans. 

After the Normans had embraced Christianity, they be 
came distinguished for their devotion according to the fashior 
of the times. Of this, pilgrimage formed a principal part, 
and the variety and the dangers of it were pleasing to the 
valiant Normans. On a visit of a number of them to the cav- 

1016. em of Mount Garganus, in Apulia, they were accosted by a 
citizen of Bari, who held out large hopes if they would assist 
in expelling the Greeks from Italy. They consented, and, 
the following year, a large body passed the Alps in small par 
ties, and united in Apulia. They were unsuccessful against 
the Greek troops ; but they kept together, and were employed 
by the neighboring princes in their quarrels. The duke of 

1029. Naples built for them the town of Aversa. Numbers of every 
nation flocked to their standard. Count Rainulf was their 
commander. 

1038. The Saracens had now held Sicily for two centuries. They 
were fallen into disunion, had thrown off their allegiance to 
the king of Tunis : each petty chief aimed at independence. 
The court of Byzantium was always anxious to recover the 
island : the present opportunity seemed favorable. Two 
brothers of the Saracens being at enmity, one applied for the 
aid of the Christians. The Grecian governor of Italy was 
directed to engage the Normans, and five hundred of their 
knights were enrolled. On landing in Sicily, the Saracens 
were found united ; but nothing could resist Norman valor, 
and thirteen cities and a great part of the island were re- 
duced to the obedience of the emperor. In the division of the 
spoil the Normans were unjustly treated, and on their return 

1040. to Italy they invaded Apulia, to indemnify themselves. Their 
whole forces were 700 horse and 500 foot; the imperial 
troops are stated at 60,000 ; yet, in the course of three years, 
the empire retained only the towns of Bari, Otranto, Brundu- 

1043. slum, and Tarentum. The Normans divided their conquests 




23 



265 



CHAP. V. INCREASE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 207 

into twelve districts, over each of which was a count, one of 
whom, under the title of count of Apulia, presided in their 
councils, held in the town of Melfi. The first count of Apulia 
was William of the Iron Arm, equally distinguished in the 
virtues of war and peace. 

The rapacity and injustice of the Normans made them 
hated. The court of Byzantium sought to deliver Italy from 
them, by inducing them to take a settlement in Asia, on the 
frontiers of Persia ; but the wily Normans saw through and 
rejected the imperial munificence. The Byzantine agent 
Argyrus thus foiled, determined on force, and a league was 
formed between the pope Leo IX, and the emperors of the x t 
East and West, against them. The pope travelled to Ger- 104i 
many to seek aid. Argyrus caused a number of the Normans 
to be assassinated. On the return of the pope, with a small 
band of German auxiliaries, a force considerable in number 
was collected. The Normans were deserted by all; they 
could only muster 8000 horse ; they were reduced to great 
straits for want of provisions, were dispirited by famine and 
superstition, and offered to submit. The alternative of death 
or exile was given by the pope : — they resolved to die as sol- 
diers, engaged the enemy, defeated them, and took the pope 
prisoner at°Civitella. The warriors knelt and implored his 
forgiveness; the well-meaning pontiff" lamented his error: by i05a 
his right, derived from the grant of Constantine, he bestowed 
on them their present and future conquests in Apulia and 
Calabria, as a fief of the holy see, which relation the kingdom 
of Naples has ever since retained. 

Tancred de Haute ville, a valvassor of Normandy, had 
twelve sons; and his patrimony was small: ten of them, at 
various times, crossed the Alps, and joined the Normans in 
Apulia. Robert, surnamed Guiscard, (Wizard T) the fourth 
of them, soon became distinguished. He commanded a di- 
vision at Civitella, and gained there the prize of valor. His 
three elder brothers, William of the Iron Arm, Drogo, and 
Humphry, had successively attained to the rank of count of 
Apulia. On the death of the last named, leaving his song 
minors, their claims were postponed to those of Robert, and 
he was chosen count of Apulia. The pope Nicholas conferred 
on him and his posterity the title of duke of Apulia; but he 106a 
waited till the next campaign had achieved the conquest of 
Reggio and Cosenza, and then he called on his victorious 
troops to confirm what the pope had bestowed. The soldiers 
joyfully hailed him duke, and he henceforth entitled himself, 
" By the grace of God and St. Peter duke of Apulia, Cala- 
bria, and hereafter of Sicily." But many years elaosed before 



268 HISTORY OF THE WORLD, PART II. 

he was master of all these dominions. The Normans were 
few ; the counts were not attached to him, and often conspired 
against him ; the scms of Humphry asserted their claims, and 
plotted against him ; the Greeks and Lombards defended the 
towns on the sea-coast with skill and courage, and the Nor- 
mans were unused to sieges. Twenty years were spent ic 
giving his dominions the extent of the present kingdom oi 
Naples. 
^. D. The conquest of Sicily was achieved in the reign of Ro- 
1060. bert Guiscard. Roger, the last of the twelve brothers, having 
arrived in Apulia, Robert admired, then envied his noble 
qualities. The Greeks had abandoned Sicily, and its con 
quest was proposed to Roger. With sixty followers, he 
crossed the strait, and drove the Saracens to the gates of 
Messina. The spoils acquired attracted others to his standard ; 
his brother aided ; small bodies of Normans overthrew large 
1090. armies of the Moslems ; and at the end of thirty years Roger, 
with the title of Great Count, was master of the island. His 
government was liberal and judicious beyond the age. The 
Moslems were protected in their persons, religion, and prop- 
erty. 

The ambition of Robert aimed at conquest in the Greek 
empire. His daughter had been betrothed to the son of the 
emperor Michael; but the youth had died, and his father 
been deposed. Robert affected to be the avenger of his 
friend : a pseudo-Michael appeared at Salerno, and was ac- 
knowledged by the wily duke and the able Gregory VII. An 
army was collected during two years, and assembled at 
Otranto. Robert landed near Vallona, at the head of 30,000 
men, of whom the kernel were 1300 Norman knights. Siege 
was laid to Durazzo, which was vigorously defended. The 
Norman fleet suffered from a dreadful storm ; it was defeated 
by that of Venice, and a reinforcement was thrown into Du- 
razzo. The able emperor Alexius Comnenus advanced at 
the head of a large army ; the English, who had left their 
country, now enslaved by the Normans, increased the number 
of the brave Verangians ; with them were joined some com- 
panies of Latins or Western Europeans ; and the rebels who 
had fled from Robert, and a body of Turkish horse, obeyed the 
commands of the Grecian emperor. Despair added to the 
courage of the Normans; the emperor injudiciously gave bat- 
tle ; the troops of Robert at first yielded ; the Varangians, 
who occupied the van, imprudently advanced too far, and ex- 
posing their flanks to the lances of the Norman knights, they 
were slaughtered. The Turks fled, and Alexius now saw 



liJAP. V INCREASE OF THE PAPAL POWER 269 

the battle was lost. On the valor of his own subjects he a. d 
placed no reliance. l^*^l 

Durazzo was taken by treachery. Robert advanced through 1082. 
Epirus into Thessaly ; but his army was reduced to a third. 
The cities of Apulia were in revolt Henry king- of Germany 
was advancing against him. He passed over to Apulia, leav* 
ing the command of the army to the gallant Bohemond, his 
son by his first wife. Bohemond besieged Larissa. Alexius 
collected another army ; various indecisive engagements took 
place ; the counts betrayed and deserted Bohemond ; his camp 
was pillaged, and he was forced to evacuate the country, and 
return to his father. Meanwhile Henry had entered Rome, 
and created an anti-pope. Gregory was besieged in the 
Vatican : he invoked the aid of his Norman vassal. Robert 1084. 
displayed the holy banner; 60(X) horse and ^,000 fix)t marched 
beneath it to Rame. Henry retired, and Gregory was lib- 
erated. Thus Robert, in the space of three years, had the 
glory of making the emperors of the East and the West fly 
before him, and of delivering the greatest of the popes from 
captivity. 

Robert prepared again to attack the eastern empire. Alex- 1084 
ius had collected a fleet to oppose him ; the Venetians joined 
their vessels to those of the empire. The Norman troops 
vvere, however, landed in safety in Epirus, and then Robert, 
with twenty galleys, sought the allied navy. Three battles 
were fought off Corfu : in the first two the Normans were 
repulsed ; in the third their victory was complete. Winter 
came on. In the spring Robert renewed his operations, in- 
tending to turn his arms against Greece ; but an epidemic 
disease seized him in Cefalonia, and he died in his tent in the \08& 
70th year of his age. The army dispersed and retired, Ro- 
bert was succeeded by his second son ; Roger Bohemond 
being regarded as illegitimate, as his father and mother had 
been within the prohibited degrees of kindred : his claims, 
however, disturbed the nation till the crusades drew him off 
Co Asia. 

Italy — The Popes. 

The pretensions of the popes during this period advanced • 
with rapid strides. In their contests with the emperors of 
*^he house of Franconia they had to rely on the aid of a strong 
party in Germany, of the great counter Matilda in the north 
of Italy, and of their Norman vassals in the south. Extent 
of the papal dominion, and emancipation from the superiority 
of the emperors, were the great objects in view : the daring' 
23 * 



270 HISTORY OF THE WOULD. PART II 

temper and lofty genius of Gregory VII. almost assured tho 
victory, 

Leo IX. and Stephen IX. had adorned the chair hy theii 
birth and virtues. In the pontificate of Nicholas II. it was 
established in a synod that the popes were to be chosen by 
the cardinal bishops (those whose sees were near Rome), and 
approved of by the cardinal priests and deacons (ministers of 
the parish churches at Rome) and the people^ and then pre 
sented for confirmation to the emperor. Hildebrand, arch- 
deacon of Rome, was the author of this plan, the object of 
which was gradually to free the papacy from imperial con- 
trol. On the death of Nicholas he had Alexander 11. chosen 
and consecrated without waiting for the imperial sanction, 
and on the death of Alexander he was himself raised to the 
pontificate under the title of Gregory VIL, yet he refused to 
be consecrated till he had obtained the emperor's consent. 

The emperor was Henry IV., a dissolute, arbitrary prince 
The Saxons were in rebellion against him, and the princes 
in general disaffected. Gregory commenced his attack by 
excommunicating some of his ministers for simony : he then 
published a decree against lay investitures, or the investing 
of spiritual persons with the ensigns of their rank by laymen 
The ring and crosier were, it was said, the emblems of a 
power which monarchs could not bestow ; and though the 
estates of the church might be temporal, yet, by their insepa- 
rable union with the spiritual office, they might be regardec 
as partaking of its sanctity. 

The pope, after long treating with the disaffected party is 
Germany, saw he might advance a little, and he summoned 
Henry to appear at Rome. Henry was enraged : he assem- 
bled at Worms a number of bishops and other vassals, and 
had a decree passed that Gregory should not be obeyed aa 
pope. Gregory, when he heard this, summoned a council at 
the Lateran, excommunicated Henry, deprived him of the 
kuigdoms of Italy and Germany, absolved his subjects from 
their allegiance, and commanded them not to obey him. 
Gregory acted advisedly in this unheard-of stretch of power. 
Henry's subjects rejoiced at being told that what was their 
inclination was also their duty : conspiracies ripened into re- 
bellion ; the bishops were terrified at the sentence of excom- 
munication ; and Henry found himself alone. He adopted 
the resolution of going to Italy, and casting himself at the 
feet of the pontiff*. In the midst of a severe winter he crossed 
the Alps, and travelled to the seat of the countess Matilda, 
at Canossa, near Reggio. Here, with naked feet, in the 
woollen shirt worn by penitents, he stood in the outer court 




Louis XIV. 



271 



CHAP. V. INCREASE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 273 

for three days, exposed to the piercing- cold. On the fourth, 
Gregory admitted and gave him absolution ; but ordered him 
to appear at a certain time, to know whether he should be 
restored to his kingdom. 

By this pusillanimous step Henry had disgusted his friends. 
He saw his imprudence, broke oft" the negotiation, and took 
to his arras : his friends rallied about him : he was victorious 
in Germany and Italy ; and he drove Gregory to die in exile 
at Salerno. Urban II. and Pascal II, carried on the contest 
with him : they excited his children to rebellion, but gained 
nothing by the unnatural contest; for Henry V., who had 
rebelled for the popes against his father, when he ascended 
his throne, clung as obstinately to the right of investiture as 
he had done. Being on good terms with his vassals, it would 
not have been safe to try with him the measures which had 
been adopted against his father ; and after a contest of fifteen 
years, the matter was settled by a compromise between him a. d 
and pope Calixtus II. The emperor renounced the right of 1122 
investing bishops with the ring and crosier, and recognized 
the liberty of elections; but the election was to take place in 
the presence of him or his officer, and he was to confer the 
temporalities by the sceptre. A similar contest had been 
carried on and was terminated in the same manner between 
Pascal II. and Henry I. of England. 

The popes had a plausible pretext for thus seeking to free 
spiritual offices from lay influence. The grossest simony had 
been practised, and the church, as far as was possible in that 
age of gross superstition, thereby deprived of its sanctity. 
They had not the same pretext for their next measure, the 
injunction of celibacy. Mankind have always attached a 
mysterious effect to this virtue. We find it in religious honor 
in Peru and in Rome. The oriental doctrines early introduced 
a reverence for it into the church. It gradually was extolled 
and enjoined ; but human nature was too strong for it, and 
marriage was generally practised among the clergy. Leo 
IX. set vigorously about enforcing it : his successors followed 
up his measures : the laity, as might be expected, took part 
against the married priests, who were the most virtuous of 
the order ; but the abuse as it was termed, could not be remov- 
ed without tolerating greater evils. It is plain what a pow 
erfiil engine this was calculated to make the clergy in the 
hands of a pope, by detaching them from all the ties of social 
►ife, and leaving them no attachment but to their order and 
^ts head. Yet we should err if we supposed all the popes to 
nave been profound calculators or unprincipled graspers at 
pf»wer. Many of them were men of eminent virtue, and few 



274 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

or them saw clearly the ultimate effect of their projects. The 
growth of the papacy was like that of a plant, the necessary 
effect of predisposing causes ; and, in the state of the human 
mind in the middle ages, its progress was as natural as that 
of any phenomenon in the physical world. 

The arms employed by the popes to effect their purpose 
wore excommunication and interdict. By the former an in- 
dividual, no matter what his rank may have been, was cut 
off from society ; it was sinful to hold any intercourse with 
him, and temporal disadvantages were annexed to the sen- 
tence. But this extended only to one person. Interdict 
visited the crime of one, usually a sovereign, on all in any 
way connected with him. When a state was laid under an 
interdict, the churches were closed, the dead unburied, the 
bells silent, no sacraments administered but baptism and ex- 
treme unction. The operation of this on the minds of a su- 
perstitious people, who attached such mysterious efficacy tc 
masses and sacraments, may easily be conceived ; and few 
monarchs had courage to dare this last effort of pontifical 
vengeance. 

With such arms, and at the head of such an army, the 
popes seemed almost secure of universal empire ; and we 
shall soon behold their power at its very climax, but yet on 
the point of declension, from causes that were in operation 
against it. 

Italy — Lombard Cities. 

The principal cities in the north of Italy had, under the 
Lombard and French kings, been subject, with their districts, 
to counts, and these again to dukes. The Saxon emperors 
separated from them the greater part of the territory, and 
the authority of the count was usually confined to the town : 
the bishop often obtained the government. The feudal law 
of Italy was not so definite as that of France ; there was 
frequent war between the vavassors and their superior lords; 
the cities were strong and populous ; bishops were elective 
and not hereditary, and less bold and energetic than lay 
princes. From all these causes the cities gradually increased 
in strength and povv^er, made war on each other, obtained 
charters from the emperors — became, in fact, perfectly inde- 
pendent. As the possessions of the rural nobility had been 
originally part of their territory, they reclaimed them, reduced 
the castles of the nobles, and compelled them to reside in the 
towns. Here the nobles aimed at obtaining the municipal 
offices, and the government was at this period chiefly in their 
hands. The policy of tlie citizens was liberal: they encour ^ 



CHAP.V. INCREASE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 275 

aged settlement among them. Their mutual and bitter wars 
i,nd animosities were the great blemish they presented 

Germany — House of Franconia. 

On the death of Henry II. the house of Saxony became a. d 
extinct. Conrad, surnamed the Salic, a nobleman of Fran- 1024 
conia, was chosen to succeed. This prince endeavored to 
increase the power of his family by bestowing several duchies 
on his relatives. In his reign Burgundy was annexed to the 
empire. His son, Henry III., trod in his steps : he disposed, 1039 
at his will, of duchies, controlled the papal power, and may 
be regarded as the most powerful and absolute of the German 
emperors. Henry IV., his son, was left a minor: his mother 1056. 
Agnes administered the government : the nobles thought the 
opportunity good for recovering their power ; the archbishop 
of Mentz carried away the young king, and governed in his 
name : the education of Henry was neglected, and he grew 
up dissolute and addicted to low company, but brave and good- 
natured. The Saxons rebelled: the quarrel about investitures 
broke out between the pope and the emperor. Henry was 
excommunicated and deposed by Gregory VII., and Rodolf 
duke of Swabia was raised to the throne. Henry detonded 
his rights with vigor: Rodolf was slain in battle. The pope 
excited Henry's son to rebellion against him ; and at the end 
of thirty years of continued war, in which he had fought 
sixty battles, the unhappy emperor sunk in death, and his- 
body lay for years unburied, as he had died excommunicated. 1106. 
Henry V., a rebel to his father, at the instigation of the holy 
see, was as tenacious as any of his predecessors of the right 
of investiture. After a long contest the matter was, as we 
have seen, settled by compromise between him and the pope. 1125 
With Henry V. ended the house of Franconia. 

France. 

Robert, son of Hugh Capet, neglected his father's projects 997 
for extending the royal power. His successor, Henry I., at- 
tempted to recover Normandy during the minority of Wil- 1031. 
ham, afterwards the Conqueror, but without success. Philip 
I. took advantage of the crusades to enlarge the limits of the 1060 
royal power; yet so narrow were these limits, that at the noa 
accession of Louis VI., the Fat, it was almost confined to the 
cities of Paris, Orleans, Bourges, and their districts ; and j[t 
cost the king no little trouble to reduce the lords of Mont 
Chery and other places near Paris. In the reign of this 
monarch properly began the wars between France and Eng- 
*and, which lasted three centuries and a half; Louis taking 



27(k history of the world. part ii. 

th« part of William, son of Robert duke of Normandy, against 
Henry I. of England, who had usurped that duchy. 

England. 

M Di After the battle of Hastings, William's claim to the crown 

i066 was admitted, the inutility of opposition being apparent. He 
was crowned at Westminster, and took the usual coronation 
oath of the Anglo-Saxon monarchs. His reign was at first 
moderate ; only, as it was necessary to gratify the rapacity 
of his Norman followers, the estates of those who fought 
against him at Hastings were unjustly confiscated as those 
of rebels. But these were halcyon days. In the following 
year he returned to Normandy: his Normans, whom he left 
in England, oppressed and insulted the people in the most 

1067 opprobrious manner. The English rebelled. William, who, 
when he left the kingdom, probably knew what would take 
place, returned, crushed the incipient insurrection, confiscated 
estates, and bestowed them on his followers. The following 
year another rebellion, produced by the same cause, had the 

10S& same result ; and William, if he ever had any regard for his 
English subjects, now manifested nothing towards them but 
hatred and aversion. Many of the English nobles fled from 
their country to Scotland, to Constantinople, and elsewhere^ 
all places of trust were in the hands of the Normans, ano 
gradually they were becoming possessed of all the lands. 
Aided by the Danes and Scots, the people rose once more in 
arms ; but the vigor and policy of the kmg proved too pow- 
erful for them. He now increased his rigor ; he laid waste 
the country between the Humber and the Tees, to curb the 
Northumbrians, and 100,000 people are said to have perished 
by this odious policy. Having now seized almost the whole 
of the land of England, he introduced all the rigors of the 
feudal law; he divided the kingdom into 60,000 knights' 
fees, which he chiefly bestowed on his Normans, to hold im- 
mediately of himself. A large portion of them were formed 
into 700 baronies, for the principal of his Norman lords, and 
such of the English as retained their lands found themselves 
subjected to the feudal burdens. Besides these baronies, 
1422 manors constituted the royal demesne, the rent of which 
was the chief revenue of the crown. All the dignities of 
the church were bestowed upon the Normans ; an attempt 
was even made to abolish the English language, which in 
part unfortunately succeeded, and hence arose the mingled 
dialect we now speak. 

Great as was the suflfering caused by the Norman monarchs 
and their barons, it is to the tyranny cf these princes that 




24 



277 



CHAP. V. INCREASE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 279 

England is in a great measure indebted for her having pre- 
ceded the other nations in the establishment of popular liberty 
and constitutional monarchy, For while elsewhere the no- 
bles could defy the king and oppress the people, here they 
were obliged to call the people to their aid against the enor- 
mous power of the crown. Hence arose the dignity and in- 
fluence of the commons of England. 

William left three sons, Robert, William, and Henry. To a. d, 
the first he left Normandy ; to the second, England. William 1087 
[I. was an oppressive, tyrannical- monarch. His brother 
Robert at first contested the crown of England with him, but 
was forced to desist from his claims. Robert was a brave, 
generous prince ; he was inflamed with the general mania 
pf the crusades, and he mortgaged Normandy to William for 
l0,000 marks, to equip him for the expedition. William earl 
of Poitiers and duke of Guienne made a similar agreement 
with him ; but as he was preparing a fleet and army to go to 
take possession of these provinces, he was accidentally shot 
by an arrow, while hunting in the New Forest, for the form- 
ation of which his father had laid waste the greater part 1100. 
of Hampshire. 

Henry on the death of his brother hastened to Winchester 
to secure the royal treasure, and he married Matilda, niece 
of Edgar Atheling, the last of the Anglo-Saxon royal family. 
On his return from the East, Robert claimed the kingdom ; 
but Henry was too strong for him ; and in consequence of the 
indolence and remissness of Robert, Henry soon afterwards 
made himself master of Normandy, and took his brother and 
confined him for life in the castle of Cardiff. Henry had a 
long contest with the popes about the right of investiture, 
and the matter was compromised as in Germany. This king 
had the misfortune to lose his only son. His daughter Ma- 
tilda was married to the emperor Henry V. ; and Henry dyin cr 
without issue, she was again married to Geoffrey son of Fulk, 
count of Anjou, by whom she had a son. Henry left Matilda 1135 
heiress of all his dominions. 

Stephen count of Blois was grandson of the conqueror, by 
his daughter Adela. Henry I. had greatly favored and en- 
riched him and his brother Henry, whom he made bishop of 
Winchester. On the death of Henry, Stephen hastened to 
England, secured the royal treasure, and was crowned. The 
rights of Matilda were upheld by her natural brother, Robert 
of Gloucester, and several barons. Nearly twenty years 
elapsed in civil war between the two parties; the power of 
the crown was greatly diminished ; the great barons were 
rapidly attaining to independence ; the papal power was en- 



280 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

croaching; and all the evils of relaxed government were felt. 
A compromise was at last made between Stephen and Henry, 
son of Matilda, to whom she had made over her rights, that 

j^. D. Stephen should reign during his life, and Henry succeed. 

1164 Stephen did not long enjoy his reign. 

Spain. 

In Spain the Christian states continued gradually to gam 
on the Mohammedan territories. Alfonso VI. of Castile an 

085. Leon had recovered from the Moslems Toledo, the ancien 
Gothic capital. Alfonso I. of Aragon pushed his conquests to 

1118. the Ebro, and made hhnself master of Saragossa, which he 
now made the capital of his dominions. 

Constantinople. 

1081. We have seen Alexius Comnenus valiantly defending his 
dominions against the Normans. With equal wisdom and 
good fortune he maintained himself against the Russians who 
assailed the empire in Europe, and the Seljookian Turks who 
pressed on it in the East. He also knew how to derive advan- 
tage from the passage over into Asia of the formidable mul- 
titudes of the crusaders. 

1118. John, the son and successor of Alexius, was also a prince 
of valor, ability, and magnanimity, and while he reigned he 

1143. bravely defended all the frontiers of the empire. His son 
Manuel partook not of the noble qualities of his family, but 
he transmitted the empire unimpaired to his son. 

The Seljookians. 

The Turks had from the most remote ages led a pastoral 
i.ife in the plains beyond the Oxus and Jaxartes, whence they 
continually made inroads into the empire of Persia. In the 
decline of the powers of the khalifs, they encroached more 
and more, and pastured their herds south of these rivers. 
They were encouraged by their countrymen, who were domi- 
nant at the court of the khalifs ; and Mahmood of Ghizni 
placed several of their tribes in Khorassan. On his death, 
these Turks made inroads into Persia, and ravaged to the 
i038. Tigris. Massood, his successor, collected an army and gave 
them battle on the plains of Zendecan. The Ghiznivide was 
defeated and driven out of the greater part of his dominions. 

The Turks now proceeded to elect a king. The decision 
was committed to the lot of arrows ; and Toghrul Beg, the 
son of Michael, the son of Seljook, gained the prize. Togh- 
rul, having made himself master of Khorassan, advanced into 
Irak, subdued it, and then took Bagdad, where he was, by 



CHAP. V INCREASE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 281 

the feeble khalif, appointed vicegerent of the vicar of the proph- ^ d. 
et, and lord over all Mohammedans. The conquest of Ader- 1055. 
bijan (Media; brought the Seljookians into contact v^^ith the 
Romans, who had gradually recovered their former possessions 
as far as the eastern frontier of Armenia, and their ambassa- 
dors appf^ared at Constantinople, to demand tribute and obedi- 
ence. The Turkish cavalry ravaged the country to the city 
of Erzeroom, and massacred 130,000 Christians ; but Toghrul 
was not able to make any lasting impression. 

Toghrul and his subjects were zealous in the faith of Islam, 
and he entertained the liighest reverence for the successors 
of the prophet. He restored to his dominion Bagdad and its 
district ; and the khalif enjoyed a degree of ease and inde- 
pendence to which he had been long a stranger. Yet it was 
with reluctance that the khalif Cayem bestowed his daughter 1063. 
on the Turkman shepherd, though monarch of Asia. 

Toghrul was succeeded by his nephew, Alp Arslan (Val- 1065. 
iant Lion). This monarch invaded the Roman empire : the 1068. 
conquest of Armenia was rapid ; the Georgians of Caucasus 
offered a braver though as unavailing a resistance. The 
Turks penetrated to Phrygia : Romanus Diogenes, the val- 
iant husband of the empress Eudocia, marched against them. 
In three campaigns he drove them beyond the Euphrates; in 1071. 
a. fourth, he attempted the recovery of Armenia. But fortune 
here deserted the Roman emperor; treachery or cowardice 
caused the overthrow of his army ; after long fighting with 
desperate valor, he was forced to surrender on the field of 
battle, and was led captive into the presence of Alp Arslan, 
whose magnanimity and generosity on this occasion may al- 
most vie with that of the Black Pripce to the king of France. 
Romanus, after the kindest treatment, was set at liberty, on 
condition of a large ransom and an annual tribute. Alp Ars- 
lan now turned his arms against his countrymen beyond the 
Oxus : the dagger of a Carismian, maddened by the severity 
of the sentence threatened him, pierced the heart of the Sel- 1072. 
JGokian in the midst of his guards, and the remains of Alp 
Arslan were entombed at Merv. 

Malek Shah, the son of Alp Arslan, was, in noble qualities 
and extent of dominion, the greatest prince of his age. The 
Turkman tribes aclmowledged his supremacy ; and from the 
confines of China to those of Constantinople and Egypt his 
mandates were obeyed. Learning was encouraged and the 
calendar reformed in the reign of Malek ; but the praise must 
be shared with his illustrious vizier, the great and good 
Nizam-ul-mulk, who directed the government under him and 
his father. Alp Arslan. At the age of ninety -three vears, 
24* 



282 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT. 

Nizam was disgraced, and he perished by tht dagger of one 
of the followers of his schoolfellow, Hassan Sabah, who had 
just now organized the society of the Assassins. Malek did 
not long survive his minister, and the brief remainder of his 

A. D. reign was inglorious. He died suddenly at Bagdad, and his 

1092 death was imputed to Hassan. 

On the death of Malek, his empire, after the usual course 
of civil war among his sons, was divided, but finally reunited 
in the person of Sanjar, the survivor of them, and the last 
great monarch of the Seljookians of Persia. Sanjar ruled 
from Cashgar to Antioch, from the Caspian to the Straits of 
Babelmandeb. 

During the time of these princes, the power of the Sel- 
jookians was established in Room, i. e. Lesser Asia. Kootel- 
mish, grandson of Seljook, had attempted to form an inde- 
pendent dominion in that country, but was defeated and slain. 
His son, Mansoor, paid tribute to Alp Arslan and Malek Shah, 
till, by the command of the latter, he also was put to death. 
His younger brother, Suleiman, would have had a similar 
fate but for the interference of Nizam-ul-mulk, on whose re- 
presentations he was not only granted his life, but given an 

1074. army, with commission to make conquest in Room. Suleiman 
crossed the Euphrates : soon almost the whole of Lesser Asia 
obeyed the Turkish sultan, who fixed his seat of empire at 
Nice in Bithynia : his aid was implored by rival candidates 
for the purple ; and even Alexius Comnenus sought his sup- 
port against the Normans. By treachery Antioch fell into 
the hands of Suleiman. Constantinople was menaced, and 
Alexius sent through Europe supplicatory epistles. Jerusalem 
was in the hands of the Turks. 

Jerusalem had long been the resort of pious or zealous 
Christians. In the times of the early khalifs and the first 
Abbassides their access had never been unpeded; and Ha- 
roon-er-Rasheed had even presented Charlemagne with the 
~Eeys of the holy sepulchre, perhaps of the city. The pil- 
grimages were advantageous to the subjects of the khalifs, as 
they brought money and trade to their coasts. When the 
Fatemites of Egypt got possession of Palestine, they were 
far from throwing any impediments in the way of western 
devotion, and it was only for a time interrupted by the mad 
009. freaks of the khalif Hakem. Sat Atsiz, one of the lieu- 
tenants of Malek Shah, marched into Syria, took Damascus, 
and reduced the province : he advanced into Egypt, and the 
Fatemite khalif was about to fly into Nubia before the troops, 
who maintained the cause of the Abbasside, when the people 
of Cairo and the negro guards valiantly repelled the Turks 




283 



CHAP. V INCREASE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 285 

from the frontiers. But Tootush, brother of Malek Shah, a. d 
now appeared, and Syria and Palestine obeyed for twenty 1076 
years the house of Seljook ; and the rude Turks treated with 
the utmost insolence and cruelty the Christian pilgrims, who 
now flocked to the Holy Land in greater numbers than ever. 

First Crusade. 

The pilgrims filled Europe with complaints of the profana- i(y.€ 
tion of the sepulchre. The letters of Alexius portrayed the 
power of the Turks, and the danger of the Greek empire : 
Gregory VII. had already meditated the union of Christen- 
dom against Islam ; Europe was full of ardent enthusiastic 
warriors. Peter the Hermit proposed to Urban II., the then 
pope, a project of leading armies into Asia, and conquering 
the Holy Land. A council was summoned at Placentia; it 
was numerously attended by both clergy and laity, and war 
was resolved on. Another council was held at Clermont in 
Auvergne, and, on hearing the exhortations of the pope and 
the hermit, the whole assembly cried, It is the will of God ! 
and each champion devoted himself to the holy war by affix- 
ing a cross to his right shoulder. 

The kingdom of heaven was promised to all who fell in the 
war against the infidels : the acquisition of earthly kingdoms 
in Asia, of whose wealth and fertility they had heard such 
marvels, was to crown success. Piety, curiosity, every feel- 
ing was roused : all sins were forgiven to the crossed ; hos^ 
tilities were prohibited against the states of those who warred 
for Christ. Robert duke of Normandy, Hugh, brother of the 
king of France, Raymond count of Toulouse, Godfrey of 
Bouillon, and his brothers Eustace and Baldwin, Stephen 
count of Blois, were the chief leaders, and an immense num- 
ber of all ranks and ages crowded to the sacred standard. 
Three hundred thousand, under the guidance of Peter the 
Hermit, Walter the Moneyless, and others, straggled on be- 
fore. In their passage through Hungary and Bulgaria, part 
were massacred by the inhabitants, whom they pillaged ; and 
the rest, on entering Asia, were slaughtered by the Turks. 
The great army followed, and poured into Constantinople, to 
the dismay of Alexius, who lost no time in passing them 
over into Asia. When assembled before the walls of Nice, 1097 
they numbered 600,000 combatants. They besieged and took 
that city, defeating the Seljookian Kilij Arslan in two great 
battles, and took every town which lay in their way to An- 
tioch, of which city Bohemond", the son of Robert Guiscard, 
was made prince. Baldwin, at the call of its Christian in- 



A. D. 



286 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART H. 

habitants, passed the Euphrates, and assumed the sovereignty 
of Edessa. 

Afdel the vizier of the Fatemite khalif Mostaali, had re- 
covered Jerusalem from the Turks : the crusaders were in- 
formed that they might now perform their vows, if they came 
unarmed, and that pilgrims would henceforth meet the good 
treatment they had hitherto experienced. The offer was re- 
j jected : the champions of the cross appeared before the holy 

1099. city. Thirty-nine days they besieged it : on the 15th of July 
it was stormed : no age or sex was spared : 70,000 is said to 
have been the number of the victims. Various circumstances 
had so reduced the Christian host, that of the vast multitude 
that crossed the Bosphorus but 1500 horse and 20,000 foot 
marched from Tortosa to Jerusalem. 

Godfrey of Bouillon was chosen king by his fellow-war- 
riors ; but he refused to bear that title in the kingdom of the 
Son of David : the land was partitioned into fiefs, and a code 
of feudal regulations, called the Assizes of Jerusalem, drawn 
up for the administration of it. Two religious military orders 
were afterwards formed for its farther defence. Before the 
time of the crusade there had been a society for attending 

.118 sick pilgrims in the hospital of St. John. Hugo des Payens, 
of the house of Champagne, Godfrey of St. Adomer, and 
seven other knights formed themselves into an order named 
Templars, irom their house near the site of the temple of 
Solomon. Their vows before the patriarch were to defend 
pilgrims against robbers, obedience, celibacy, and poverty. 
St. Bernard, at the desire of the king of France and other 
lords and princes, drew up a rule for them. In battle they 
vowed to be the first in action, the last in retreat: this ex- 
ample was followed by the brethren of the Hospital ; and a 
new order, tlie Teutonic, was soon added to these military 
and religious associations. The Christian empire at this pe- 
riod extended from the borders of Armenia to those of Egypt: 
but it was feeble, and encompassed by powerful enemies. Its 
population, though brave, was few ; and its reliance, an iin 
stable one, was on the West, 



.HAP. VI. PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 287 

CHAP. VI. 

THP PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT 

Italy — The Popes. 

From the time of Gregory VII. his successors faithfully 
8<lhered to his principle of extending the power of the holy 
see. After him no pope dreamed ol' waiting for the imperial 
confirmation. It was even hinted that the emperor should, 
in right, be confirmed by the pope. In their intercourse with 
the German emperors, the pope and his legate used language 
respecting the imperial dignity which seemed to imply that 
it was a fief of the holy see ; and Adrian, when granting Ire- 
land to Henry II., spoke of all islands as being the property 
of St. Peter. 

This last and other monarchs made a resolute opposition 
to the exorbitant claims of the pontiffs ; but the latter knew 
so well how to take advantage of circumstances, and had such 
a well-disciplined army in the clergy, and so powerful a ma- 
chine to work with in the gross superstition of the laity, that 
they were seldom foiled in any of their measures. The pon- 
tiff who carried his pretensions the highest, and exercised 
them most effectually, was Innocent III,, who, of noble birth, 
lofly and powerful mind, and in the prime of life, ascended a d. 
the papal throne in 1194. Availing himself of the embar- 119i- 
rassments of the Saxon emperors of Germany, of the ambition 
and interestedness of Philip Augustus of France, and of the 
vices and cowardice of the infamous John, and the feebleness 
and folly of his son Henry III. of England, Innocent raised the 
papal power to a height scarcely dreamed of by his predeces- 
sors. He acquired independent sovereignty in Italy, estab- 
lished the control over temporal princes, and supremacy over 
the church. 

The popes, in consequence of real or pretended grants from 
Constantine, Pepin and his son, and Louis, had always laid 
claim to extensive dominions; but in reality they possessed 
hardly any. In Rome the imperial prefect and the turbulent 
spirit of the people held them in check, and all the little 
places about Rome were as independent as in the days of 
Romulus. The countess Matilda, the great friend of Gregory 
VII., had lefl the reversion of her large possessions to the 
holy see. These were the imperial fiefs of Tuscany, Mantua, 
and Modena, of which she had certainly no. right to dispose : 
the remainder, the duchy of Spoleto, and the march of Anco- 



288 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART n. 

na, she held under a somewhat different title, and might ap- 
pear to have more power over. However, the emperors dis- 
k. D. regarded the claims of the pontiffs, and disposed of Spoleto 
1177. and Ancona as parts of the empire. Frederick Barbarossa 
promised to restore them after fifteen years ; but Henry VI. 
granted them away as imperial fiefs. At his death, a dis- 
puted succession engaging the Germans in civil war, Italy 
was left to herself; and Innocent now put forth the claims of 
the holy see, and produced a true or false will of Henry VI. 
in its favor. The cities of these states had, like those of Lom- 
bardy, become independent, but were harassed by German 
partisans settled in Italy by the emperors, and they gladly 
put themselves under the protection of the holy see. Thus 
Spoleto and Anr/ina submitted, and, a few years afterwards, 
Innocent, not foeling himself strong enough to hold them, 
prudently granted Ancona in fief to the marquis of Este. At 
home he forced the prefect to swear allegiance to him, and 
not to the emperor, and curbed as far as he was able the spirit 
of the people. Thus the holy see became a temporal power. 
The superiority of the pontifical over the royal power was 
strongly put forth by Innocent : the kingdoms of the earth 
were Christ's, and consequently, by the logic of those days, 
his vicar's ; and the little, mean, selfish policy of the princes 
prompted them, on every occasion where they had any object 
to attain, to submit to and forward the pretensions of their 
common enemy. The submission of Henry 11. cannot be 
blamed : he struggled nobly, and had all the world against 
him. The baseness of John, in surrendering his kingdom, 
and receiving it back as a fief, is unparalleled. Peter II. of 
Aragon, it is true, did the same ; but with certainly a better 
motive — to secure it against ambitious neighbors. The pope 
was, in fact, become suzerain, censor, and conservator of the 
peace of Europe : his weapons were interdict and excommu- 
nication. These were effectual, and, when the interests of 
the holy see were not involved, were often beneficially em- 
ployed. Philip Augustus, for example, when in the zenith 
of his power, having divorced his wife, the Danish princess 
Ingeborg, under the pretext of consanguinity, and espoused 
another, Innocent, who, when his own .^nterest was not con- 
cerned, loved social order, directed him to take back his 
queen. Philip demurred ; France was laid under interdict, 
and Philip submitted. The papal thunder rolled over every 
kingdom in Europe, enjoining peace, and punishing public 
and private offences. 

National churches had originally possessed a good deal of 
independence and the clergy had shown every disposition t( 




25 



289 



CrfAP. VT. P"APA.. POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 291 

exercise a despotic power over the laity ; but the popes were 
bent to draw all power to themselves. It had been their 
policy to support bishops against their metropolitans, and 
thereby break the power of the latter ; they now prohibited 
any bishop to exercise his functions till he had received con- 
firmation from the holy see. Gregory forced bishops to ap- 
pear in person at Rome, to receive the pallium, and all pre- 
lates were harassed with citations thither. Legates were sta- 
tioned in every kingdom, as the representatives of the popes, 
with extensive powers. The popes levied taxes on the clergy 
to an enormous extent : they assumed the right of appointing 
to bishoprics, and all other benefices. 

J The chief bases on which the papal dominion rested were^ 
after the gross superstition of the people, 1. The canon law- 
originating in the false decretals of Isidore, which had been 
brought forth, towards the end of the eighth century, with 
the view of lowering the authority of metropolitans, by allow- 
ing of appeals to Rome, and forbidding national councils to 
be held without its consent. These'^decr^als purported to be 
the decrees of the early bishops of Rome.l About 1140, Gra- 
tian, a monk, published his Decretum, in which the decretals 
of Isidore, and the rescripts of pontiffs and decrees of coun- 
cils, were arranged under heads, like the Pandects: various 
additions were made to this; the civil law was followed; the 
papal power extolled, and, in the professors of this law, a 
powerful body of partisans raised for the papacy. — 2. The es- 
tablishments of the mendicant orders, who by a greater strict- 
ness of manners, a professedly purer system of faith, and an 
abuse of the secular clergy, gained the esteem of the laity, 
always caught by these qualities. Devoted to the pontiifs, 
they were supported in return by them, and exempted from 
episcopal authority : for as the secular clergy became disaf- 
fected on account of the manner in wli ich they were pillaged 
by the papacy, the latter *was glad to raise up rivals to theiH. 
The great schoolmen, such as Thomas Aquinas, were of these 
orders, and they elevated the papal authority to the utmost. 
Two other causes increased the papal influence with princes 
and the great: — 3. Dispensations of marriage. The ascetic 
maxims, which had so early gotten into the church, extended 
the prohibition of marriage to the seventh degree of consan- 
guinity ; this was afterwards extended to affinity, and then to 
spiritual affinity, or gossipship. The royal and great familiea 
were so connected with one another, that it was difficult for 
them to marry without the canonical limits ; and hence all 
the divorces we read of under this pretext, but caused by pas- 
sion or ambition. Innocent III. laid it down as a maxim, that 



292 ■ HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART It 

he was empowered to dispense with the law : money soor 
flowed rapidly into the papal exchequer, and princes looked 
up to their spiritual father, who could allow them to gratify 
their passions. — 4. The dispensing power which legitimated 
bastards, and released men from their most solemn oaths and 
engagements, on the ground that oaths extorted by violence, 
or iniurious to the church, are not binding. 

Such was the papal power when at its zenith ; a power, no 
doubt, not unfrequently exerted for beneficial purposes, but, 
from its very nature, prejudicial to the best interests of man. 
The world never will witness such another dominion ; for it 
is hardly within the limits of possibility that such a state of 
society as the middle ages presented can return. ^ 

Italy — the Lombard Cities. 

The cities of Lombardy all acknowledged the superiority 
of the emperor. When Frederic Barbarossa ascended the 
throne, he claimed all the power possessed by Augustus. The 
independence of the Lombard cities appeared to him rebellion, 
and he resolved to chastise it. The injustice of Milan, which, 
in 1111, had taken and razed Lodi, gave him a pretext. Two 
citizens of the latter implored him to avenge its wrongs. He 
entered Italy, held a diet at Roncaglia, where complaints 
poured in against the Milanese. He took the field against 
them and their allies ; but the nature of a feudal army, and 
the ill terms he was on with pope Adrian IV., prevented his 
effecting much. He assembled another army, to which al- 
most every city of Lombardy was forced to send its militia, 
and Milan was reduced to surrender. 

^ J, Frederic held another diet at Roncaglia, in which the cities 

1158. were forbidden to make war on each other, to coin money, or 
levy tolls ; and an imperial magistrate, called Podesta, was to 
administer justice with the consuls, as their own chief magis- 
trates were styled. The Milanese were more severely treated 
than any others : they saw the utter destruction of their liber- 
ties was intended : they took arms ; but were only aided by 
Crema, their Platsea. But Crema was taken and razed, and 

1162. soon after Milan experienced the same fate. 

The emperor now proceeded to establish the most absolute 
power all over Lombardy. In vain the citizens implored; 
they only got vague hopes of redress. But the principle of 
liberty was strong, and the Lombard league was secretly 

167. formed. Frederic, in his attempt to make an anti-pope, was 
besieging Rome ; the flower of his army fell victims to the 
malaria of the autumn, and he was obliged to recross the Alps. 
After some years of indecisive warfare, he invaded the Mi- 



CHAF. VI. PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 293 

lanese, and the confederates gave him battle and a signal de- a. ix 
feat at Legnano. A truce was made through the mediation 1176 
of Venice, for six years ; and at length, by the peace of Con- 
sCance, the cities were reinstated in their independence, re- 
serving the imperial superiority. 1183. 

The Lombard cities were afterwards split into the Guelf 
and Ghibilin factions, which we shall presently explain : they 
generally sided with the popes against the emperors, and 
were continually engaged in wars with one another. 

Italy — Naples and Sicily, 

The family of Roger count of Sicily had gotten the regal 1166. 
dignity, and also the Italian dominions of the family of Rob- 
ert Guiscard. William the Good was the last of these princes. 
Constantia, his aunt, was married to the emperor Henry VI. ; 
but on the death of William, the nobles, who dreaded the 1186. 
power of Henry, raised Tancred, William's natural cousin, to 
the throne; and, on his death, his infant son William III. 1189. 
The emperor ha-stened over to Sicily; defeated his opponents; 1194. 
took the young king prisoner ; led him to Germany, and there 
treated him with the greatest barbarity. On the birth of 
Frederic II., Constantia governed Sicily in his name, and on 
her death, the pope, Innocent III., becoming guardian to the 1200 
young monarch, endeavored to derive from that circumstance 
all the advantages he could for the holy see. 

Germany — Swabian Line, 

With Henry V. ended the male line of the Franconian 1125. 
emperors. Frederic duke of Swabia, grandson, by his mother, 
of Henry IV., had inherited their estates. But the princes 
were anxious to make the crown really elective, and many, 
besides, entertained a strong dislike to the late emperor. The 
crown was, therefore, bestowed, with some opposition, on Lo- 
thaire duke of Saxony. As chief of a nation, the bitter ene- 
mies of the house of Franconia, Lothaire did every thing in 
his power to depress Frederic and Conrad of Hohenstauffen, 
the heads of the Swabian family, and to secure the empire 
for his son-in-law, Henry the Proud, duke of Bavaria, de- 
scended from Welf, fourth son of Azzo, marquis of Este, by 
Cunegonde, heiress of the Welfs of Altorf in Swabia. Henry 
also possessed, through his mother, Luneburg, the patrimony 
of the Billungs, the ancient dukes of Saxony ; and by his 
marriage with the only child of Lothaire he got Hanover and 
Brunswick, the patrimony of Henry the Fowler, and Lothaire 
Hdded the duchy of Saxony. 

But the extent of his poi^essions was prejudicial to Henry. 113? 
25* 



294 HISTORY OF THE WOKLB. PART II. 

On the death of Lothaire, Conrad of Swabia was hastily 
■ elected by the partisans of his house, and the Saxon party 
was forced to submit. Conrad, taking advantage of the jeal- 
ousy caused by the large possessions of Henry, pretended 
that two duchies could not legally be held by one person, and 
summoned him to surrender one of them. Henry refusing, the 
diet pronounced both to be forfeited, and Henry was speedily 
stripped of all he possessed. The factions of the Guelfs and 
Ghibilins date from this period : the former, from Welf, de- 
note the partisans of the house of Saxony ; the latter, from 
Wibelung a town in Franconia, whence the emperors of 
that line sprang whom the house of Swabia was held to re- 
present. As the latter possessed the imperial dignity when 
these names were transmitted to Italy, the Ghibilins there 
were the partisans of the emperor, the Guelfs those of the 

A. D. pope and his other opponents. 

1152. Conrad IIL, when dying, though he had a son, recom- 
mended to the electors his nephew, Frederic duke of Swabia, 
surnamed Barbarossa (Red-beard,) and he was elected em- 
peror. Frederic was an able, politic prince. His contests 
with tht ities of Lombardy we have already noticed, in 
which the triumph of liberty over power was glorious and 

1159. complete. At Rome the opposite factions had elected two 
rival popes, Victor IV. and Alexander IIL Frederic sided 
with the former ; the kings of France and England, and the 
Lombard cities, with the latter. After the battle of Legnano 
the emperor was. forced to acknowledge Alexander, by kissing 
his feet, and holding his stirrup as he mounted his mule — 
new inventions of the servants of the servants of Christ. 

The emperor Conrad had restored Saxony to Henry the 
Lion, son of Henry the Proud. Bavaria had been bestowed 
on the margraf of Austria, Henry's guardians having re- 

1156. nounced it in his name. He now applied to Frederic, who was 
his first cousin, and whose life he had saved at Rome, to have 
it restored. Frederic complied with his desire, and they 
lived for several years in harmony. But when the emperor 
was leading into Lombardy the army which was defeated at 
Legnano, Henry, prompted by jealousy or ambition, refused 
to assist. On his return, Frederic summoned him to answer 
charges in a diet. Henry refused compliance, and his pos- 
181. sessions were confiscated and shared among his enemies. He 
now implored the emperor's mercy, who advised him to re- 
tire to England till the present possessors could be prevailed 
on to relinquish them. The duke passed three years at the 
court of his father-in-law Henry II., and at length his allodial 
estates of Saxony were restored to him. Fifty years after, 




295 



CHAP. VI. PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 297 

these were made imperial fiefs, and became the two duchies 
of Brunswick, whose dukes are the representatives of Henry 
the Lion, and inherit the name of Guelf. 

Saladin having now taken Jerusalem, a crusade was preach- a. a 
ed. Frederic took the cross, and passed over to Asia with a H^^ 
large army ; but, bathing on a hot day in a cold mountain- 
stream, like Alexander in the Cydnus, in the same vicinity, 
he caught a disorder, and died in the 69th year of his age. 

Henry VL, the Severe, succeeded his father. The power 1190 
of Henry was so great in Germany, that, but for the vigorous 
opposition of the Saxons, he would have made the empire 
hereditary in his family. His short reign was chiefly occu- 
pied in making himself master of Naples and Sicily, where 
he exercised the most atrocious cruelty against his opposers. 

Frederic II. was but two years old at the death of his father. 1198 
Though Henry had had him elected, a strong party of the 
princes, backed by Innocent III., who wished to reduce the 
house of Swabia, showed a disposition to retract. Philip 
duke of Swabia, brother to the late emperor, unable to secure 
the succession of his nephew, got himself chosen by one 
party ; the other chose Otho, son of Henry the Lion. A civil 
war ensued, in which Philip was victorious, and drove Otho 
out of Germany ; but being shortly afterwards assassinated 
by the count palatine of Bavaria, Otho IV. returned, married 
the daughter of Philip, and was crowned at Rome, resign- 
mg the inheritance of the countess Matilda to the holy see. 
But Otho, feeling himself strong, revoked his concessions, 
and the pope supported Frederic IL, now grown up, against 
him. Otho was generally deserted, except by his Saxons, 
and Frederic was crowned at Aix-la-Chapelle. Otho's death 1215 
in 1218 left the young emperor at peace in Germany. 

But it was in Italy that Frederic passed the greater part 
of his reign. On his accession to the imperial dignity he had 
taken the cross. The pope was continually urging him to 
perform his vow ; but, engaged in improving and benefiting 
his Neapolitan and Sicilian dominions, he neglected to comply. 
Honorius III. threatened to excommunicate him, but Frederic 1226. 
despised the threat. He and the pope were afterwards recon- 
ciled. Gregory IX. having declared him incapable of the im- 
perial dignity for his disobedience, Frederic ravaged the 
patrimony of the church. He was then actually excommuni- 1228 
cated, and the usual course of bloodshed, poisoning, war, and 
assassination took place in Italy. At length Frederic resolved 
to perform his vow ; but the pope prohibited his departure till 
he should be absolved. Frederic went in contempt of the 
church, and was more successful than any of the preceding 



298 HISTORY OP THE WORLB. ^PART II. 

A. D. crusaders, for Jerusalem and its territory were ceaed to him 

1230 by the sultan of Egypt. 

The remainder of Frederic's reign was a coiitinued struggle 
with the holy see. All Italy was split into the Guelf and 
Ghibilin factions ; the pope preached a crusade against Frede- 
ric, and excited the Lombard cities to war, and his son Henry 
to rebellion against him ; but the emperor was everywhere 
successful. The succeeding pontiffs, Celestine IV. and Inno- 
245. cent IV., followed up the measures of Gregory. On the death 
of Henry, who had been king of the Romans, the German 
bishops, by the direction of Innocent, who had deposed Frede- 
ric, elected Henry landgraf of Thuringia, and, on his death, 

1248. William count of Holland. Fortune was now adverse to 
Frederic ; he was defeated before Parma, and, retiring to 

1250 Naples to raise an army, he there died of a fever, in the 57th 
year of his age. Frederic was a prince of great endowments, 
and a zealous patron of learning. 

Conrad, son of Frederic, and his rival William, did not 
survive many years. Richard duke of Cornwall and Alfonso 
X. of Castile, were chosen by opposite parties of the electors ; 
but for twenty-three years there may be said to have been an 
interregnum, and the empire without a recognized head. 

1255. During this period, the cities on the Rhine entered into a 
league for mutual defence in their commerce. A few years 

1241. before, the northern cities had entered into the celebrated 
Hanseatic league for a similar purpose. 

France. 

Louis VII., the Young, contrary to the advice of his wise 
minister the abbe Suger, undertook a crusade with the em- 

1147 peror Conrad III. Both were equally unsuccessful. Eleanor, 
queen of Louis, had accompanied him ; but having had an 

1149. amour with a young Turk, Louis, on his return, divorced her, 
and resigned the rich territories he had obtained with her. 
Henry II. of England then married Eleanor. 

1180. Philip II. Augustus, son of Louis VII., was the ablest 
monarch France had seen since Charlemagne. He raised 
the crown of France from the state of degradation it had been 
in, by reuniting to it several of the great fiefs. He took from 
the count of Flanders the Vermandois and Artois. When 
John of England had murdered his nephew Arthur, Philip 
summoned him as his vassal to be tried by his peers, and, on 
his not appearing, he seized on Normandy, Maine, and Anjou, 
which were never restored to the English crown. Philip had 
accompanied Richard I. to the Holy Land, and his behavior to 
that prince does his memory little credit. 



CHAP. VI. PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 299 

Louis VIII. had, during- the lifetime of his father, been in- a. d 
vited over to England against king John by the barons, who 122'^ 
offered him the crown. He met in that expedition but slender 
success. On coming to the throne, he attempted the con- 
quest of the remaining dominions of the English kings in 
France, made himself master of Poitou, and was on the point 
of subjecting Guienne, when he was drawn away to Langue- 
doc, where the pope had preached a crusade against the Al- 1208 
bigeois, and Raymond count of Toulouse who protected them. 
More than the usual quantity of blood had been shed and de- 
vastation committed by the pope's warriors, led on by the 
fanatic hypocrite Simon de Montfort. This chief was now 
dead; but the pope was unrelenting, and Louis VIII. was 
called on to take the cross against the son of Raymond, and 
he gave up the conquest of Guienne for this purpose. But 
he died after a short though successful war. 

Louis IX., St. Louis, was only twelve years old on the 1226. 
death of his father ; but his mother, Blanche of Castile, gov- 
erned during his minority with wisdom and vigor. The great 
vassals made several attempts to recover their former inde- 
pendence ; but the address of the regent always triumphed 
over them. When Louis came of age, he fully displayed his 
estimable qualities. Such were the moderation and justice 
of this good king, that, so far from encroaching on his neigh- 
bors, he even made restitution of what they had been unjustly 
deprived of. He restored to Henry III. a great part of what 
he had lost in France, and he always sought to mediate be- 
tween that prince and his barons. Louis administered justice 
personally to all who sought it; and he drew up his Establish- 
ments, the first code compiled by the Capetian family. The 
sole blemishes of this excellent prince's character were, his 
too great deference for his mother, and his superstition, which 1248 
last led him to undertake two crusades, in one of which he 
lost his army, and was made prisoner ; in the other he ex- 
pired on the torrid coast of Africa. Yet France has surely 1270 
reason to be proud of St. Louis ; for a monarch his equal has 
rarely, if ever, adorned any throne. . 

England — the Plantagenets. 

Henry XL, son of Matilda, daughter of Henry L, and of 115'' 
Geoffrey Plantagenet, count of Anjou, inherited by his mother, 
England, Normandy, and the feudal superiority over Britany; 
by his father, Anjou, Touraine, and Maine ; and, by marrying* 
Eleanor, heiress of Guienne and Poitou, whom Louis VII. 
had divorced, he became master of these extensive provinces. 
He was young, brave, talented, amiable, and ambitious, a 



300 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PART II. 

formidable rival to the king of France. Henry gave the 
feudal system a blow, by substituting, in the beginning of his 
reign, the practice of levying a scutage, or tax on each 
knight's fee, instead of personal service, and with that money 

A. D. paying a mercenary army. He sought to check the encroach- 

1164. ments of the papacy, by procuring the Constitutions of Cla- 
rendon to be passed, by which the permission of the king 
was made requisite to the taking effect of any papal act, and 
for appeals to Rome ; and the clergy were to be tried for their 
crimes in the lay courts. The king's chief opponent was 
Thomas a Becket, whom he had made archbishop of Canter- 

*170. bury, and the contest ended in the murder of that violent but 
sincere prelate. Henry invaded and partly conquered Ire- 
land. The latter part of his reign • was spent in opposing the 
rebellions of his own sons, actuated by the king of France. 
Henry 11. was perhaps the ablest king that ever sat on the 
throne of England. 

1169. Richard I. succeeded, as his brother Henry had died before 
his father. The reign of this monarch was almost wholly oc- 
cupied by his crusade to Palestine with Philip of France. In 
the East he performed prodigies of valor ; but, on his return, 
was seized and imprisoned by the duke of Austria. He was 
ransomed by his subjects, but soon after died of a wound he 
received before the petty fortress of Chains. Military skill 
and valor formed the most conspicuous part of Richard's char- 
acter. Hence he was named Coeur-de-Lion, Lion-hearted. 

1199. John was nominated successor by his brother Richard ; but 
Geoffrey, duke of Britany, an elder brother, had left a son 
named Arthur. As John was detested, the claims of Arthur 
were put forward ; and the barons of Anjou, Maine, and Tou- 
raine declared for him, backed by the king of France. John 
afterwards, happening to take his nephew, stabbed him with 
his own hand. For this crime the king of France, as supe- 
rior lord, summoned him to answer before his peers. On his 
not appearing, his fiefs were declared forfeited, and Philip en- 
tered and took possession of Normandy, Anjou, Maine, and 
Touraine, which were thus united for ever to the French 
crown. John now quarrelled with the pope, the intrepid Inno- 
cent III. : his dominions were laid under interdict, himself de- 
posed, and his kingdom bestowed on the king of France. The 
213 pusillanimous John submitted to hold his dominions as fiefs 
of the holy see, to do homage for them, and to pay 1000 
marks of silver annual tribute. His subjects, despising and 
detesting him, seized this occasion for restraining the enor- 
mous prerogative of the crown. At the instigation of the 
primate Langton, the barons took arms, and forced the king 




26 



SOI 



CHAP. VI. PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 303 

to sign, at Runnymead, the Magna Charta, the great charter a. d 
of liberty of all ranks of the people. Some time after, having 1215 
taken into pay a body of mercenary troops, John attempted to 
annul the great charter. The barons in their despair offered 
the crown to Louis, son of the king of France, who invaded 
England ; but John dying, the barons returned to their alle- 
giance, and crowned his infant son Henry. The character of 
John may be summed up in the words of the Roman satirist, 
Monstrum a vitils nulla virtute redemptum. 

Henry III. being but nine years old, the government was 1216 
administered by the earl of Pembroke, mareschal of England, 
and a new charter of liberties was granted, which conciliated 
all orders. As Henry grew up, the defects of his character . 
became apparent : he was weak, inactive, and, imprudently 
attached to his relations and to foreigners, he heaped riches 
and estates upon them with the most lavish prodigality : for a 
share of the spoil, he concurred in the monstrous exactions 
of the court of Rome, which attained their height in this 
reign. The foolish king, being offered by the artful pontiff 
the crown of Naples for his second son, lavished great sums 
of money in that wild project. The barons were incensed at 
all his acts of folly and injustice ; they forced him to renew 
in the most solemn manner the great charter ; but hardly had 1255. 
the weak monarch sworn to observe it, when he was mduced 
by Iris favorite to transgress it as before. Simon de Mont- 
fort, earl of Leicester, himself a foreigner and son of the 
general in the crusade against the Albigeois, called on the 
barons to take arms in defence of their rights thus trampled 
on by the king's foreign favorites. The barons appeared in 
arms in the next parliament : the king was terrified, and sub- 
mitted ; the Provisions of Oxford were made, and unlimited 1258 
power was given to twenty-four barons, with Leicester at 
their head, to reform the state. This body, like the decem- 
virate of old, sought to make itself the absolute terror of 
king and people : the tide of popularity turned against it ; 
the pope released Henry and his subjects from their oaths to 1262. 
it, and the king resumed his authority. Leicester, who had 
left the kingdom, returned : his party was still strong, espe- 
cially in London and the towns ; he formed an alliance with 
the Welsh, and had recourse to arms. At the battle of Lewes 1£64. 
the king was taken prisoner, and his son, prince Edward, 
giving himself in exchange for him, Leicester detained both. 
Edward afterwards escaped, and defeated and slew Leicester 
at the battle of Evesham, and put an end to the civil war. 1265 
The poor old king passed the rest of his days in peace. His 
reign was longer than that of any English king except 



304 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

A D George III. In this reign the house of commons dates its 

i2ti5 origin ; Leicester, in the 49th year of the king, previously to 

a parliament being held in London, having issued writs to the 

sheriffs, directing them to return two knights from each shire, 

and two burgesses from each city or town. 

Ireland. 

Ireland was originally peopled by a portion of the Keltic 
race, who we may suppose passed over to it from Britain. It 
had always been divided into little independent states. The 
manners of the people were like those of all others in the 
same condition of society. Everlasting petty warfare, murder, 
abduction, and similar acts of violence were exhibited. It had 
been converted pretty early to Christianity by Patricius, a 
native of Britain. Like its neighbors, it was exposed to the 
ravages of the Northmen, who, invincible there as every- 
where else, had conquered a part of the country. Henry II. 
had cast an eye of cupidity upon it ; and the pope Adrian IV., 
as the Irish church was not remarkable for obedience, readily, 
in the plenitude of his power, conferred the dominion of it 
on the English monarch. An occasion for interposing soon 
occurred. Dermot M'Murrough, king of Leinster, carried 
off the wife of O'Ruarc of Brefihey (Leitrim and Sligo) : the 
latter applied to Roderic O'Connor, king of Connaught, the 
chief of the five provincial monarchs, and Dermot was de- 
feated and chased out of his dominions by their united forces. 
He repaired to Henry II., then in Guienne, and sought his 
aid, offering to acknowledge himself his vassal. Henry, 
being then engaged, gave him letters, empowering any ot 
his English suQects who pleased to engage in the enterprise. 
Richard earl of Pembroke, surnamed Strongbow, and some 
other adventurers, embarked in the enterprise ; and though 
their numbers were small, such was the superiority of theii 
arms and their skill, that they overpowered all resistance. 
Henry himself appeared in Ireland, and received the homage 
172. of its princes. But the conquest was merely nominal ; and ages 
elapsed before Ireland was really subdued. It is, perhaps, 
not unworthy of observation, that the kmg of England in- 
vaded Ireland in defence of adultery, and by virtue of a re- 
cognition of the power of the pope to dispose of kingdoms. 
So little scrupulous about means is ambition, so heedless of 
remote consequences ! 

Spain. 

212. Malik-en-Nasir Mohammed, the Almohade prince of Mo- 
rocco, crossed the sea with 100,000 warriors, and he was 



CHAP. VI. PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 805 

joined by the Moors of Andalusia. On the Navas de Tolosa, 
near Ubeda, his army was engaged (July 16) by the united 
force of the Christian states of the peninsula, under Alfonso 
VIII. of Castile ; and the victory of that day established the a o 
superiority of the Christians for ever. St. Ferdinand, grandson 1236. 
of Alfonso, united Castile and Leon. He conquered Baeza 1248. 
and Cordova, and, eighteen months afterwards, Seville, in 
which last he fixed his residence. Cadiz was soon obliged to 1250. 
Bubmit ; and the Moors were now confined to Granada. 

Jayme I. of Aragon, called the Conqueror, drove the Moors 1229 
out of the Balearic Isles, and conquered the kingdoms of 
Valencia and Murcia, the latter of which he gave, according 1238. 
to agreement, to the king of Castile. 

Portugal. 

Henry, a knight of the house of Burgundy, having distin- 
guished himself at the siege of Toledo, Alfonso gave him his 1085 
daughter in marriage, and the government of the conquests 
of the kings of Leon in the mountains to the west. Henry 
settled himself at Guimaraens, whence he continually harassed 
the Moors, and conquered the city of Porto. His son, count 
Alfonso, emulated his military fame, and conquered Alemtejo. 1112. 
The Moorish princes collected all their forces on the plains 1139. 
of Ourique. The troops of Alfonso were greatly inferior in 
number ; but a hermit comforted him by a vision, and the 
faith of the leader was communicated to his soldiers. The 
Moors were totally routed, and Alfonso was saluted king of 
Portugal by his army on the field of battle. Sancho, son of 
Alfonso, was valiant as his father. With the aid of some cru- 
saders from Germany and Holland, who put into the Tagus, 
he took Silvas, the capital of Algarve ; but the Emir-el-Moo- 
menim, or prince of the Almohades, forced him to resign it. 

The Almohades. 

A man, named Mohammed, being driven out of Morocco, 1119 
where he professed to preach Islam in greater purity, having, 
with the aid of his disciple, Abd-el-Moomen, a young man at 
Tremessen, persuaded the Berbers that he was himself the 
Mehedee, or doctor of the law, who, he preached, was to be 
sent to purify the faith, assumed the title of Mehedee, and at 
the head of his followers waged war successfully against Ali, 
the Almoravide king of Morocco. His followers were called 
Almohades. He fortified the city of Tinmal, on an elevated 
and inaccessible position on Mount Atlas, and made it the 
seat of his dominion. They were called to the defence of the 
Zeirides, against Roger of Sicily, and relieved them. Abd- 
26* 



306 HISTOKY OF THE WORLD. PART 11. 

el-Moomen now laid siege to Morocco ; the Almoravides de- 
fended it with their usual spirit ; 100,000 lives were consumed 
in the siege ; the Almohades took the city, and extended their 
A. D. dominion from the deserts of Barca to the Atlantic. They 
.1 17. passed over to Spain, and conquered the Ahnoravide domin- 
ions in that country. 

Persia. 

During the decline of the house of Seljook, a number of petty 
princes, governors of provinces, and others, made themselves 
independent. The title of these princes was Atta-beg ;* they 
ruled over Aderbijan, Fars, and Laristan, and each line of Atta- 
begs presents the uniform character of eastern rule. These 
dynasties, with that of the Assassins, established about the end 
of the eleventh century by Hassan Sabah, were gradually over- 
thrown, some by the sultan of Khowaresm, and all finally ter- 
minated by Hulagoo, the grandson of Chingis Khan. 

Saladin. 

A vizier of the feeble Fatemite khalifs called on Noor-ed» 
deen Mohammed, attabeg of Moussel, who had conquered 
Syria, to come to the support of the Fatemite empire. The 

1171. Turks sent by him under Sheerkoo conquered Egypt. The 
army made Saleh-ed-deen (Saladin,) nephew of Sheerkoo, 
governor, on the death of his uncle, and Noor-ed-deen con- 
firmed him in his office. Saladin, who was a Koord by nation, 
placed himself on the throne of the last Fatemite khalif, and 
founded his dynasty, called the Ayubides. He conquered 
Syria from the family of Noor-ed-deen. He also reduced the 
Happy Arabia, and took Tripoli and Tunis from the Almo- 
hades. He now turned his arms against Jerusalem. He en- 
tered the country at the north ; and as he was besieging Ti- 
berias, Guy de Lusignan, with all the forces of his kingdom, 
came against him. Saladin surprised them, cut them to 
pieces, and took Guy prisoner. All the cities submitted at his 
approach ; and on the fourteenth day of the siege Jerusalem 

1188. opened her gates. The conqueror acted with the greatest 
mildness ; the Christians were left in possession of the holy 
sepulchre ; free egress was given to all. 

The news filled Europe with consternation : a crusade was 
preached, and a large army collected, which sailed for the 
Holy Land, under Richard I. and Philip Augustus. But the 
genius and resources of Saladin, and the discord of the con- 

* Atta-beg signifies father-prince, and was the title assumed by those, 
who, like the mayors of the palace, under the Merovingian line in Franco, 
governed under tiie name of some legitimate prince. 




307 



CHAP. VI. PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 309 

federates, prevented the accomplishment of its objects. Sala- i, o. 
dm died in his 57th year at Damascus. The virtues of this ^19& 
prince have been alike celebrated in Europe and Asia. 

The Mamelukes. 

Malek-el-Adel, the brother of Saladin, dispossessed his 
children of the dominions of their father. After ascending- 
the throne he resigned it to his own sons. In the reign of 
Malek-el-Moattam, the last of the descendants of Malek-el- 
Adel, St. Louis undertook the crusade in which he and his 1249 
army were made prisoners in Egypt. The sultan released 
them for a heavy ransom, and the tovras that had been taken. 

The Mamelukes (guards formed by Saladin from Cauca- 
sian slaves,) who had long felt their own power, and whose 
commanders were offended at any measure of importance 
being taken without their consent, were highly incensed at 1250 
this peace. They murdered the sultan, and set in his place 
one of their own commanders, Az-ed-deen Aybeg. They 
then arranged the government, so that the sultan and vizier 
should consult the emirs in all matters of importance ; that 
there should be a great cadi, and a cadi for each of the four 
orthodox sects of Islam, to administer justice. Their num- 
bers were kept up by supplies from their native country ; and 
for two centuries and a half the Mamelukes ruled over Egypt. 
Rarely a son lived to succeed his father: often a favorite 
slave or a brave soldier was seated on the vacant throne. 

Constantinople. 

Alexius, the young son of Manuel Comnenus, was mur- 1183 
dered by his relative Andronicus, who reigned two years, 
and was then dethroned and put to death by Isaac Angelus. 1185 
Isaac, a prince of some good qualities, was robbed of the em- 
pire, and blinded by his own brother, Alexius III. His son 119 
Alexius fled to the West to seek for aid ; and as the fourth 
crusade was then preparing to set out for Asia, he persuaded 
its commanders to assist in restoring his father to his throne, 
engaging, in case of success, to supply them with provisions, 
and to pay them a large sum of money. His offers were ac- 
cepted. Constantinople was taken, Isaac released, and his 
son, Alexius IV., placed on the throne. Alexius and his 
father were murdered by his cousin, named Murzufle (Alexius 1204 
v.). Under the pretext of avenging Alexius, the crusaders 
took and plundered the city, and placed Baldwin count of 
Flanders on the vacant throne, assigning him a fourth of the 
empire, and dividing the remainder among themselves. 

Three states were formed by the Greeks. Theodore Laa- 



310 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

caris, son-in-law of Alexis III., established himself in Nice, 
and, under the title of emperor, governed a great part of 
Lesser Asia. One of the Comnenian family settled at Tre- 
bisond, on the eastern end of the Black Sea, and was also 
styled emperor. Another Comnenian, of the family of An- 
gelus, ruled, under the title or despot, over a principality in 
Epirus, jEtolia, and Thessaly. 
A. D. Baldwin reigned but one year; he was taken prisoner and 
1205. cruelly put to death by the Bulgarians. His brother and suc- 
1216. cesser, Henry, an abler prince, died by poison. The throne 
then came to his brother-in-law, Peter de Courtenay, grand- 
son of Louis VL, and his children. 

John Lascaris and his son governed their Asiatic empire 

with prudence and valor. His grandson, of the same name, 

came to the throne a minor, and was murdered by Michael 

1261. Paleeologus, one of whose generals retook, in one night, the 

imperial city, which the Latins had held but fifty-seven years. 

The Crusades. 

The kingdom of Jerusalem was continually harassed by 
its Mohammedan neighbors in Syria and Egypt. The forma- 
tion of the orders of the Templars and the Hospitalers, and 
the constant accession of volunteers from Europe, enabled it 
to resist its enemies ; and prodigies of valor equal to any in 
romance were achieved by the warriors of the cross. But in 
less than half a century after the conquest, the state of Edessa 
having been subdued by th6 attabeg of Moussel, more power- 
ful aid was deemed requisite, and St. Bernard preached a new 
crusade. At his persuasion, the cross was assumed by Louis 

1147. VIL of France and Conrad IIL of Germany. The number 
of all ranks engaged in this crusade is estimated at 300,000. 
The Germans went first, and the same ravages which had 
disgraced the first crusade occurred also in this. The Greek 
emperor, Manuel, was terrified at their numbers, and em- 
ployed artifice to get rid of them. They passed over ; and 
the imprudence of Conrad caused him to march into the heart 
148. of Lesser Asia, where his troops were cut to pieces by the 
sultan of Iconium. Conrad fled to the French army, and 
then returned to Constantinople. Louis pursued his march : 
near Laodicea he sustained a partial defeat; but he reached 
Antioch, and thence proceeded to the Holy Land, and he and 
his troops aided at the unsuccessful siege of Damascus. 
J 187. When intelligence arrived in Europe of the capture of Je- 
rusalem by Saladin, the utmost grief and indignation pre- 

1188. vailed; and Clement IIL ordered a crusade to be preached 
everywhere. The emperor, Frederic Barbarossa, assembled 



VUAF. VI. PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 311 

a diet at Mentz, where he and his son Frederic, and the 
greatest of the German nobles, took the cross. The same 
was done by Richard I. and Philip Augustus. It was not now, 
as in the first crusade, piety that actuated these kings and 
nobles, — that motive had given place to the passion for mili- 
tary fame and glory. 

The emperor, on marshalling his forces, found them to 
amount to 100,000 figliting men, care having been taken to 
keep off the beggarly rabble which had attended the former 
expeditions. He marched through Hungary into the Greek 
territories, where the emperor, Isaac Angelus, harassed the 
crusaders as far as he was able. Frederic laid the country 
under contribution, cut to pieces the Greek troops, and made 
the emperor sue for peace. He wintered at Adrianople, passed 
over to Asia in spring, defeated the Turks in several battles, 
took Icon mm, and crossed Mount Taurus. But coming on a 
sultry day (June 10th) to the Seief, a gelid mountain-stream, a. a 
he threw himself into its waters, and was unfortunately li90. 
drowned. 

Richard of England, Philip of France, Henry count of 
Champagne, Thibaut of Blois, Philip of Flanders, and numer- 
ous other princes and nobles, collected their forces on the 
plain of Vezelay, and found them to amount to 100,000 fight- 1190. 
ing men. Aware of the evils that had attended the former 
land expeditions, they resolved to convey their forces by sea. 
Richard led his troops to Marseilles, Philip his to Genoa, 
where they embarked. The appointed place of rendezvous 
was Messina ; and while they staid there, various incidents 
occurred to excite jealously and disunion between the mon- 
archs. Driven by a storm to the isle of Cyprus, Richard de- 
posed, for his cruelty to the crews of some of his ships, Isaac 
Comnenus, who tyrannized over the island, and sold the sove- 
reignty of it to Guy de Lusignan, the king of Jerusalem, in 
whose family it continued for three hundred years. 

An army of Christians, aided by the slender remains of 
that of the emperor Frederic, was besieging Acre, or Ptole= 
mais. After a heroic resistance, it was forced to surrender to 
the emulative valor of Richard and Philip. But the latter, 
instead of pursuing this success, jealous of the superior fame 
of the English monarch, returned to Europe, under the pre- 
text of ill health, leaving 10,000 of his troops, under the duke 
of Burgundy. The siege of Ascalon was now resolved on 
The Christian army marched along the sea-coast: Salad in 
collected all his strength to oppose them : a bloody and well- 
contested battle took place. Nothing could resist the valor 
and imoetuosity of Richard; 8000 of the Moslems were left 1192. 



312 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART 11. 

dead. Ascalon and Joppa were razed by Saladin at their ap- 
proach; the cruyaders came within sight of the holy city; 
but the fickle king of England was weary of the war, and 
anxious to return home. A truce was concluded with Sala- 
din, by which the Christians were to hold Ptolemais, Joppa, 
and other sea-ports, and to visit the holy sepulchre unmolested. 
The gallant Richard was, on his return through Germany, 
basely thrown into prison by Leopold duke of Austria, whom 
he had offended at Ptolemais. 

A D The fourth crusade was composed of French and Germans 

1202. led by Baldwin count of Flanders. The Venetians furnished 
ships. Its first efforts were directed against the city of Zara 
in Dalmatia, which had revolted from Venice, and, in spite 
of the pope's excommunication, it was reduced. The arms 
of the faithful were now directed against Constantinople, 

1204. which, as we have seen, they took, placing their leader on 
the throne. In the partition, Venice got the island and the 
Morea, the marquis of Montferrat Thessaly, Ville Hardouin 
(the historian of this conquest) Achaia, and Otto de la Roche, 
a Burgundian, became duke of Athens. 

1216. The fiflh crusade was chiefly composed of G'^'rmans and 
the neighboring people ; Andrew IL, king of Hungary, was 
its commander. The main body marched to Italy, to embark 
in its ports ; others sailed from the ports of Saxony, and, being 
driven by a storm into Lisbon, were prevailed on by Don 
Sancho to assist him against the Moors. The king of Hun- 
gary and his troops, with the king of Cyprus, landed at 
Ptolemais, where John de Brienne, the titular king of Jeru- 
salem, gladly received them. They attempted in vain to take 
Tabor ; were obliged to divide for subsistence ; the king of 
Cyprus died, and the king of Hungary found it necessary to 
return home. On being joined by the fleet from Portugal, it 
was resolved in council to besiege Damietta, in Egypt. An 

1219, army, led by the sultan to its relief, was defeated. The duke 
of Austria and his forces now returned home ; but a rein- 
forcement arrived, under the cardinal Albano, to whom, as 
the officer of the pope, John de Brienne was obliged to re- 
sign the command, and the military priest injudiciously led 
his army between two branches of the Nile, at the season 
that river was beginning to overflow. The sultan opened the 
sluices, and burned the ships j3f the Christians, who were 
221. forced to restore Damietta, and bind themselves not to serve 
for eight years against the sultan. 

1228. The emperor Frederic IL, who had long promised, at 
length sailed to the East. He did not spill any blood ; but he 
made an advantageous treaty with Malek-el-Kamel, sultan of 




27 



813 



CF\. . VI. PAPAL POWER AT ITS GREATEST HEIGHT. 3t5 

Eijcypt, who ceded to him Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and all the 
villages between the former place and Jaffa, and Ptolemais. 

The Khowaresmians, flying' before the Mongols, had poured a. d. 
down on Lower Asia, and had seized on Syria and Palestine. 1244 
St. Louis, having" iii a fit of sickness vowed a. crusade, he 
collected a fine army, and sailed for the East. He resolved 
to commence by reducing Egypt, and landed at Damietta, 
which was abandoned to him. But his troops were wasted 
by sickness, and defeated at Massoor, where his brother Rob- 
ert of Artois was killed at his side, and himself, his two bro- 
thers, and all his chief nobility taken prisoners. At the price 
of a large rafisom and the city of Damietta they were set at 
liberty. 1250 

Twenty years afterwards, this excellent monarch, whose 1270. 
only defect almost was superstition, sailed with another expe- 
dition for the Holy Land ; but hearing that the king of Tunis 
was inclined to embrace Christianity, he directed his course 
thither. Finding the intelligence to be false, he laid siege to 
the city ; but he here caught a fever and died, and with him 
died the spirit of the crusades. Edward, son of oux Henry IIL, 
revived the fame of Richard ; but the Latin power gradually 129L 
declined, and Acre, its last seat, fell to the sultan of Egypt. 

The crusades, though originating in folly and superstition, 
and productive of a large quantity of positive suffering to 
both Europe and Asia, have, in the order of Providence, been 
also productive of good. They awoke the mind of Europe 
from its slumber of ignorance and barbarism, by bringing it 
into contact with the more polished nations of the East ; they 
enlarged the sphere of ideas, gave a taste for elegance and 
refinement, extended navigation and commerce, and thereby 
increased the wealth and power of cities ; they diminished 
the property and influence of the factious and tyrannic nobles, 
and enlarged the authority of monarchs. The degree of in- 
tercourse that prevailed between Europe and Asia, during 
the period of the crusades, was far beyond what we usually 
conceive. It has not become adequately known until very 
recently. 

The Mongols — Chingis Khan. 

In the ancient country of this race, a great khan who had 
ruled over 30,000 families on the banks of the Selinga had 
died, leaving his son Temujin a child. The horde separated, 
and Temujin, when he grew up, found only thirteen families 
adhering to him. He distinguished himself by valor, talent, 
and generosity. In an assembly of the nation on the Selinga, 
one of their wise men arose and said, he had had a vision, in 



316 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT, 

which he saw the great God of heaven sitting on his throne 
X D. in council, and heard sentence given that Temujin should be 
1206. Chingis Khan, i. e. Greatest Khan, The Mongols raised 
their hands, and swore to follow their Chingis Khan whither- 
soever he went. 

He first invaded China, overthrew the dynasty of Song 
and took Yen King, their capital. He conquered Corea, then 
turned westward, subdued Tibet, penetrated to Cashmeer, 
and to the borders of Khowaresm, whose sultan had van- 
quished the dynasty of Ghaur, and ruled over nearly all Per 
sia, and a great portion of Hindostan. The sultan Ala-ed-deen 
Mohammed took the field at the head of 400,000 men, was 
defeated, and his country subdued. His son, Jellel-ed-deen 
Mohammed, heroically, but in vain, resisted the conquerors. 
The shores of the Caspian were conquered. The tsar of Rus- 
sia advanced with a large army to the Calca, was defeated 
1227. and put to flight. Chingis Khan gave laws and regulations 
to the Mongols, and died in the 64th year of his age. 

The sons of Chingis, Octal, Joojee or Tooshee, Toolee, and 
Jagatai, and their sons, Gooyookh, Batoo, Hoolagoo, and 
Kublai, followed up his conquests. Resistance was every- 
1241. where overborne. Alexander Nevski, the great duke of Rus- 
sia and conqueror of Livonia, was overthrown ; his successor 
was forced to fly to Poland, and the house of Ruric reduced to 
such dependence, that for two hundred years it paid tribute 
to the khan of the golden horde. 

This conquest was achieved by Batoo, son of Joojee, who 
then led his army to the confines of Europe. Poland offered 
no resistance. Batoo took and burned Cracow. Bela IV., 
king of Hungary, gave him battle, but was utterly defeated. 
The Mongols advanced and burned Breslau. The emperor 
Frederic 11. and the pope called on all Europe to aid. Crowds 
of volunteers joined the standard of Henry duke of Lower 
124S Silesia. The battle, one of the bloodiest ever fought against 
the orientals, was given at Wollstadt, near Lignitz, and lost. 
The whole country was deserted ; but the Mongols could not 
form sieges, and they retired. 

Kublai, son of Toolee, completed tlie conquest of China. 

End of the Khalifat at Bagdad. 

Hoolegoo, the grandson of Chingis, undertook the conquest 
of Bagdad. The Mongols advanced, treachery aided, and the 
City of Peace was taken. In the 656th year of the Hegira, 
the 56th successor of the prophet was trodden beneath the 
f(?et of the horses of the Mongols. Bagdad was plundered 
during forty days, and 200,000 persons slaughtered. Th 



CilAF VIl. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 317 

Strong-holds of the Assassins were taken, and that sect de- 
etroyed. The Mongols took Aleppo and Damascus, and en- a. p. 
tered the Holy Land. Seif-ed-deen, the Mameluke sultan of 1260 
Egypt, defeated them there, and his successor, Bibers, drove 
them out of Syria. 

Hakem bi-emr-illah Ahmed Mostaser of the house of Abbas I26a 
fled to Bibers, who received him kindly, and gave him an es- 
tablishment at Cairo ; and for two centuries and a half the 
successors of the prophet lived on the bounty of the Mameluke 
eultans. 



CHAP. VIL 

BECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER, AND FORMATION OF (SREAT 
MONARCmES. 

Italy — The Popes, 

The high assumptions, the intolerable rapacity, and the 
extreme corruption of the court of Rome, were gradually 
tlienating from it all orders of men. The clergy were in- 
censed at the heavy taxes imposed on them, the invasion of 
the rights of patronage, and the favor shown to the mendicant 
orders; and even some of the latter began to declaim against 
its corruption and vices. In this state of affairs Boniface VIIL 
obtained the triple crown, and, not attending to the sigTis of 
the times, endeavored to raise the papal power to a higher 
point than it had yet aUained, but thereby only showed its 
real weakness. 

Edward L and Philip the Fair began to attack the revenues 
of the church. The pope left the former and his clergy to 
themselves ; but when Philip taxed those of France without 
their consent, Boniface issued a bull, forbidding the clergy of 
every kingdom to pay any thing without his permission. But 
the French clergy adhered to their king, and he and the pope 
became reconciled. Some years afterwards the bishop of 1301 
Paraiers, as legate of the pope, behaved with great disrespect 
to the king, and, as he was his subject, Philip put him under 
arrest. Boniface, in a rage, issued several bulls, in one of 
which he asserted that the king was subject to him in tempo- 
ral as well as in spiritual matters. Philip had the bulls pub- 
licly burnt at Paris, and summoned the states-general of his 
kmgdom, who disclaimed, in the fullest manner, the temporal 
authority of the pope. 

Boniface held a council at Rome, m which he promulgated 
27* 



A. D. 



318 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT 

his constitution of Unam sanctam, by which he declares the 
church to be one body under one head, possessing two swords • 
one spiritual, to be wielded by the pope himself; the other 
temporal, to be used by kings and knights at his will, and 
with iiis permission, Bui the latter must be subject to the 
former, for every human being is in subjection to the see of 
Rome. He concludes another bull thus: — "Since such ia 
our pleasure, who, Dy divine permission, rule the world. 
Finding Philip still refractory, he excommunicated him, giv 
ing his kingdom to the emperor Albert I., and was then abon 
to absolve his subjects from their allegiance. Philip now as- 
serted that Boniface was not legally elected, and appealed to 
a general council and a lawful pope. But he at the same 
time ventured on an act of fortunate temerity : he secretly 
sent into Italy a gentleman named Nogaret, who, with the 
aid of Sciarra Colonna, who was persecuted by the pope, 
seized him in the town of Anagni, whither he was gone with- 
out guards. On the third day the neighboring gentry came 
to his rescue ; but the haughty pontiff was so mortified at 
what had befallen him, that his rage brought on a fever, 

J302. which terminated his days. His successor, Benedict XL, re- 
scinded the bulls against Philip, and thereby showed the real 
decline of the papacy since the days of Innocent. 

1305. Clement V., who had been archbishop of Bourdeaux, re- 
moved, at the desire of the king of France, the papal chair to 
Avignon, where it continued under his six successors, all of 
whom were French, for a space of seventy years. 

The Avignon pontiffs were engaged in a long contest with 
the emperor Louis of Bavaria, in which they asserted, that 
though the power of choosing an emperor had been trans- 
ferred to certain electors, the popes still retained the right of 
approving the choice, and of receiving an oath of fealty from 
the emperor on his coronation. This quarrel originated in 
the attempts of the emperors to regain their imperial rights 

1323. in Italy. In the course of the contest Louis was excommu- 
nicated, and his subjects released from their allegiance ; but 
they remained firm to him, and if Louis himself had acted 
with more vigor, he would have come off victor in the con- 
test. 

J 338 But though thus apparently triumphant over the emperor, 
the papal power was gradually losing ground. The diet of 
Frankfort positively denied all right of the pope to interfere 
in imperial elections. Scholastic science had inured men to 
thought, and they began to employ their mother-tongues as 
its organ : men of learning and patriotism assailed the found- 
ations of the oapal edifice, and the ballad and the tale ex- 




319 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWE^. 321 

posed the profligacy and corruption of the church. A portion 
of the Franciscan friars, whom John XXtl. persecuted for 
some follies, loudly proclaimed the pope to be Antichrist, and 
supported the emperor Louis. The rapacity of the papal court 
now passed all bounds. John XXII. imposed the tax of an- 
nates, or first-fruits, on all benefices, to be paid into the papal 
chancery; the same pontiff reseryef? to himself all the bishop- 
rics in Christendom. Benedict XII. assumed the right of dis- 
posing of all benefices vacant by cession, translation, or de- 
privation. Empire had been the object of the former popes : 
money that of these more low-minded pontiffs. 

The wishes of Italy and of Europe, joined with the evils a. d. 
arising from absence from Rome, induced Gregory XL to re- 1376 
move the papal chair back to that city. Soon after occurred 
the famous schism. On the death of Gregory, tlie cardinals, 1378 
who were mostly French, assembling to elect a successor, the 
populace collected and insisted on his being an Italian. The 
archbishop of Bari, a Neapolitan, was elected, and he took 
the name of Urban VI. For some weeks the cardinals obeyed 
him ; but, disgusted with the harshness of his temper, they 
conspired against him, and he threw several of them into 
prison : the rest fled to Fondi, and, with the opinion of Nic- 
colo Spinelli, the great Neapolitan lawyer, they proceeded to 
a new election, under the pretext of the last having been ef- 
fected by intimidation. They chose the cardinal Robert, who 
took the name of Clement VIL, and fixed his seat at Avignon. 
Urban tortured and even executed some of the cardinals and 
prelates who were his prisoners. 

Italy, Germany, England, and the North adhered to Urban ; 
France, Spain, Scotland, and Sicily to Clement. All wished 
both to resign, and the cardinals to proceed to a new elec- 
tion ; but neither party would recede. Three pontiffs suc- 
ceeded Urban; Benedict XIII. was the only successor of 
Clement. The cardinals on both sides at last deserted their 
heads, and a general council was summoned to meet at Pisa. 1409. 
In this assembly the two pontiffs, Gregory XII. and Benedict 
XIIL, were deposed, and Alexander V. elected ; but Spain 
adhered to Gregory, and Benedict was supported by others, 
so that now there were three rival pontiffs. Another council 1414. 
was held at Constance, in which, under the pretext of his 
enormous vices, John XXIIL, Alexander's successor, was 
deposed ; Gregory submitted, and the obstinate Benedict was 
depose d. Otto Colonna, a man of great prudence, was elected 
under the name of Martin V. 

To curb the papal power, to reduce the government of the 
church f'-om an absolute to a limited monarchy, was the olv- 



322 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

ject aiTYied at in the council of Constance; and it declared 
that a council has received, hy divine right, a poM^er in mat- 
ters concerning- religion, to which every other, even the 
papal, must submit. This council, it is to be observed, was 
composed not merely of bishops, like the ancient ones, but of 
abbots, deputies of universities, ambassadors of princes, theo- 
logians, and doctors of law. To obviate the influence of the 
numerous Italian bishops, the council was divided into four 
nations, Italian, German, French, and English, with equal 
rights, and the majority of the four was to decide each ques- 
tion. A committee of reformation was appointed ; but the 
art of the Italians, by taking advantage of the national jeal- 
ousies, prevented any thing effectual being done. Martin V., 
when elected, lost no time in dissolving the council. 

It was decreed that another council should be held in five, 
a second in seven years, and then one every ten years. The 
jj first was called at Pavia, but owing to the plague was re- 
1433. moved to Siena, and nothing effected in it. The second was 
convoked to Basle ; but Martin dying before it met, Eugenius 
IV. attempted to transfer it to Italy, where the papal strength 
lay. After several years' contest, Eugenius, by his preroga- 
tive, removed it, under pretext of the union he was nego- 
tiating with the Greek church, to Ferrara, and thence to 
Florence. But the assembly at Basle still sat, and proceeded 
in the work of reformation, abolishing annates, reservations, 
1439. and other papal abuses. They proceeded so far as to depose 
Eugenius, and elect Amadous, the first duke of Savoy, who 
had laid down his dignity, and retired into private life. Few 
states concurred in this assumption of power ; the party of 
the fathers of Basle became weaker every day; and Nicholas 
449. v., the successor of Eugenius, easily prevailed on Felix V., 
as Amadous was called, to resign. The popes ever after 
dreaded the idea of a general council, of which Europe has 
since seen but one, and that called greatly against the incli- 
nation of the pontiff. All the future popes, but one, were 
Italians ; they learned to confine their views to Italy, where, 
as a temporal power, they established their influence in their 
own states, and engaged in the political projects of their 
neighbors. 

A general spirit of opposition to the encroachments of 
Rome, and of the church in general, prevailed throughout 
Europe, orecursive of the reformation. England in this led 
the way : her kings and parliaments set barriers to ecclesias- 
tical encroachments: the tenets of Wickliff had many favor- 
ers ; and parliament even went so far as to press Henry IV. 
to seize the temporalities of the church. Opinions si»\ilar tc 



CHAP. Vir. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 323 

those of Wickliff were preached in Bohemia by Hnss and 
Jerome of Prague ; and the base act of treachery sanctioned 
by the fathers at Constance against the former, tended to cast 
an additional odium on the church. 

Italy — The Republics, 

In the 13th century the republics of Italy were numerous 
and independent. They may be regarded as forming four 
great clusters, according to their situation. 1. Central Lom- 
bardy, containing Milan, Cremona, Parma, Pavia, Brescia, 
Bergamo, Piacenza, Mantua, &c. 2. The march of Verona, 
in which were Verona, Vicenza, Padua, and Treviso. 3. 
Romagna, where were Bologna, Imola, Modena, Faenza, 
Ferrara, &c. 4. Tuscany, containing Florence, Pisa, Lucca, 
Siena, &c. All of these were split into the Guelf and Ghibilm 
factions. In the first, Milan was Guelf, and her influence 
made the whole except Parma and Cremona such : in the 
second, Ezzelin da Romano, a nobleman of the country, to 
whom Frederic II. had given his natural daughter in mar- 
riage, by his talents and his merciless cruelty made the Ghibi- 
lin cause triumphant: in the third, the Guelf party predomi- 
nated : in the fourth, Florence headed the Guelf, Pisa the 
Ghibilin party. To these we are to add the great maritime 
republics, Genoa on the west, and Venice on the east, and 
we have a view of the state of northern and central Italy. 

Under their republican forms of government these cities 
were opulent, industrious, and powerful; but they were 
harassed by external and internal discord, and before the end 
of the thirteenth century all those of the first three classes 
were under the rule of signori, answering to the Greek 
tyrants. In Milan the Torreani and then the Visconti ruled ; 
in Verona the Delia Scala ; at Ferrara and Modena the Este ; 
at Padua the Carrara ; at Mantua the Gonzaga. Of these by 
far the most powerful were the Visconti ; and though mur- 
der, assassination, and every crime were freely perpetrated 
by all, none equalled them in atrocity. 

Florence, like the other cities, was divided into Guelfs and 
• Ghibilins. She had a farther division of parties, called the 
Neri and Bianchi. There were here, as elsewhere, powerful 
noble families, the Donati, Amidei, Uberti, Buondelmonti, 
whose feuds filled the city with confusion and riot. The 
citizens were divided into arts, or companies of the different 
trades, each of which had its own council, consul, and gon- 
faloniere, to whose standard all the members repaired in any ^ ^ 
commotion. The government had been in the hands of the 1266 
nobles ; but in 1266 it was thrown chiefly into the hands of 



324 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

the commons. Feuds ran high between the two orders. A 
^, n. iiGw order of plebeian nobility arose, and chiefly administered 
1336. the government : the people disliked both. An officer, named 
the Captain of Defence, was appointed with great criminal 
1342. jurisdiction, but was speedily expelled for his tyranny. Soon 
after, Walter de Brienne, duke of Athens, was intrusted with 
unlimited military and judicial power, with a view to hi 
curbing the nobility ; but he aimed at the tyranny, and 
conspiracy expelled him. 

Though incessantly changing her form of government, 
Florence, from the animating influence of the principle of 
liberty, increased in wealth and consequence. She engaged 
in wars with the powers of Lombardy, and made the con- 
quest of Prato, Pisa, and other places in Tuscany. Her wars 
were carried on by mercenary troops, which, under their 
condottieri, answered to the companies of adventure in 
France. 

Pisa was one of the first Italian cities that was distinguish- 
ed by naval armaments. In the 11th century she conquered 
Sardinia from the Moors, and also obtained a short possession 
of the Baleares : Corsica and Elba also belonged to her. Her 
commerce was, of course, extensive. She derived great ad- 
vantage from the crusades. In 1119, war broke out between 
Pisa and Genoa, which lasted the greater part of two centu- 
ries. The sea-fight off" the isle of Meloria, in 1284, gave 
the power of Pisa its death-blow. She ceased to be a mari- 
time power, gradually declined, and at length became subject 
to Florence. 

Genoa rose into importance coeval with Pisa. Her pros- 
1261.perity increased rapidly on the recovery of Constantinople 
from the Latins, in which event she aided. Palasologus as- 
signed the Genoese the suburb of Pera, where their colony 
lived in independence, under a magistrate sent from home, 
and they thence carried on an extensive trade with the coasts 
of the Black Sea, on which they erected factories, and with 
the inland country. Rivalry ensued between them and the 
Venetians: several hard-fought actions took place, particu- 
larly one in the Sea of Marmora, where the Genoese fought 
single-handed against the Venetians, Catalans, and Greeks. 
«t8. The most important was the war of Chioggia, where the 
Genoese, after defeating the Venetian fleet, entered the la- 
gunes of Venice. Certain of reducing the city, the Genoese 
admiral, Dona, refused the most advantageous offers of peace. 
The Venetians, gathering courage from despair, equipped a 
fleet, closed up the passage of the lagunes, besieged the 




Death of General Wolfe. 



28 



325 



CHAP. VTI. DECLINE OF TlirE PAPAL POWER. 327 

Genoese in the island of Chiog-gia, and at length obliged tliem 
to surrender. From that period dates the decline of Genoa. 

Like the other Italian cities, Genoa was harassed by the 
feuds of her nobles. The leading families on the Guelf side 
were the Grimaldi and Fieschi ; on the Ghibilin, the Doria, 
and Spinola. As at Florence, the nobles were reduced, and 

plebeian oligarchy, the Adorni, Fregosi, Montalti, took their 
place. Yet it is remarkable that the Genoese fleets wore al- 
most always commanded by one of the nobles. The revolu- 
tions in Genoa were incessant. In 1339, the chief magistrate, 
named Doge, was first appointed. 

Venice owed her origin to some citizens of Aquileia, who, 
Id the beginning of the 5th century, fled to the islands at the 
mouth of the Brenta, and built the town of Rivoalto, after- 
wards called Venice. This town gradually increased in popu- 
lation and strength. Till the 10th century, it continued sub- 
ject to the Eastern empire. At this time Venice made several 
acquisitions in Dalmatia. She very early applied to commerce, 
and she derived very great advantages from the crusades. On 
the taking of Constantinople by the Latins, in which her fleet, 
under Henry Dandolo, the doge, bore a great share, she got 
three-eighths of the city and of the provinces, and she pur- 
chased the shares of some of the other spoilers. It v/as thus 
she obtained Candia and the Ionian isles. The trade of Ven- 
ice was chiefly carried on with Syria and Egypt, and she was 
the great medium of conveying the productions of the East 
into Europe. After the war of Chioggia, Venice began to 
turn her thoughts towards territorial acquisitions. Before 
that period, the Venetians had united with Florence to check 
the career of Mastijio deila Scala, lord of Verona, and had 
gained Treviso. They looked on with indiflerence at the 
progress of the Visconti of Milan; but when, in the confusion 
that followed the death of Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Francesco 
Carrara, lord of Padua, had seized Verona, the Venetians, 
who hated that family, took arms, and reduced both Padua 
and Verona, and the duke of Milan ceded Vicenza to them. 
Venice afterwards, in alliance with Florence, against Filippo 
Maria Visconti, took into her service Carmagnola, the cele- 
brated condottiere, and she acquired Brescia and Bergamo, 
and reached the Adda, which she never passed. ^. 0, 

The government of Venice, at first, perhaps, merely fede- 697. 
rative, had become, under its Doge, or duke, nearly an elec- 
tive absolute monarchy. Limitations were gradually laid on 
his power, which ended in making the doge little more than 

pageant, and converting the government into a jealous close 



328 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT. 

aristocracy, which, with its various councils and intricate 
mode of election, has lasted down to near the present tinie. 

Italy — Naples and Sicily. 

1254. On the death of Conrad, son of Frederic 11., his natura 
brother Manfred occupied the kingdom in the name of Con- 
radin, the young heir. The Ghibilin party looked up to Man- 
fred as their head : the pope hated him as the son of Frederic. 
The pope, as superior lord, offered the kingdom which Man 
fred had usurped to Charles of Anjou, brother of St. Louis, 
who, with his brother's consent, led thither a crusade, as it 

1266. was called. Manfred fell in the field. Conradin, afterwards 
attempting to recover his inheritance, was taken prisoner, 

1268. and judicially murdered by Charles. But Constance, daughter 
of Manfred, was married to Peter III. of Aragon, who, in her 
right, claimed the crown. 

Charles was master of Provence, Naples, Sicily, head of 
the Guelf party in Italy, and created by the pope vicar-gene- 
ral in Tuscany. John of Procida, one of the adherents of 
Manfred, was living in Valencia, watching an opportunity of 
revenge. The Neapolitan barons were French, or in that 
interest; but Sicily was treated as a conquered country, the 
women, after the usual manner of the French, insulted, and 
the indignation of the people thereby excited, which was in- 
creased by the speeches of John, who went in disguise 
through the island. Pope Nicholas III., adverse to the An- 
gevin dynasty, the court of Constantinople, the king of Ara- 
gon, all entered into the project of John of Procida, and when 

1253. the massacre of the French, called the Sicilian vespers, an 
utterly unpremeditated act, occurred, the fleet of the king of 
Aragon was at hand, and the Sicilians gave him the crown. 
A war ensued, in which the king of Naples was supported 
by the kings of France and Castile, and by the pope. Peter 
dying, left Sicily to his second son, James ; and Alfonso, king 
of Aragon, made peace, engaging not to assist Sicily. James, 
on succeeding to his brother in Aragon, renounced Sicily ; 
but the Sicilians transferred the crown to his brother Frede- 
ric, and maintained the war against Charles 11. of Naples, 
and the king of Aragon ; and peace was at length concluded, 

i 300 on condition that Frederic should retain for life the kingdom, 

which then should revert to the crown of Naples. 
305 On the death of Charles 11., the crown was disputed be- 
tween Caribert, the son of his eldest son Charles, who had 
died king of Hungary, and Robert, his eldest living son. The 
point was referred to the pope, the feudal lord of the king- 
dom, who gave fcentence in favor of Robert. The latter leav- 



CHAP. VII DECLINE OF HIE PAPAL POWEU. H29 

ing no male issue, the crown descended to his grand-daughter 
Joanna. She was espoused to her cousin Andrew, son of Cari- 
bert, king- of Hungary ; but the manners of this prince were a. d 
brutal, and he was assassinated, an act of which the guilt 13'i5 
was laid on the queen. Louis king of Hungary invaded Na- 
ples, to avenge the death of his brother. Joanna fled, but 
aflerwards regained her crown. The queen had no children. 
The king of Hungary, and Charles duke of Durazzo, were 
the only male descendants of Charles I. The latter was mar- 
ried to the queen's niece, and was regarded by her as heir 
to the crown. Offended with the queen, Charles invaded her 
kingdom, took her prisoner, and had her smothered in prison. 1378 

But Joanna had adopted Louis of Anjou, uncle to Charles 
VL of France. He easily entered on Provence, and led 
30,000 men to Naples, but he effected nothing. Charles IIL, 
now, as he thought, secure, accepted the crown of Hungary. 
His son Ladislaus, only ten years of age, succeeded him in 
Naples. The party that had called in Louis then invited his 
son Louis IL, and put him in possession of the greater part 
of the kingdom. But as Ladislaus grew up, he displayed su- 
perior qualities ; the Angevin barons came over to him, and 
he recovered the whole of the kingdom. On the death of 
this able prince, his elder sister, Joanna H., a weak, vicious 
woman, came to the throne. The kingdom fell into anarchy. 
Sforza Attendolo, the great constable, and Ser Gianni Carac- 
cioli, the seneschal, were the most powerful individuals. 
Sforza called in a pretender to the crown, Louis IIL of An- 
jou. Caraccioli persuaded the queen to adopt Alfonso, king 
of Aragon and Sicily. 

The successors of Frederic I. of Sicily, were weak or in- 
fant princes. Maria queen of Sicily had married Martin, son 
of the king of Aragon, to whom, when dying, she left her i409 
crown ; and on his death his father Martin, king of Aragon, 
had taken possession of Sicily as heir to his son. 

Alfonso gladly embraced the offer of Joanna ; but jealousy 
of him, or some other cause, induced her to revoke her deed, 
and adopt Louis ; and the queen's and the Angevin parties 
united were too strong for Alfonso. Louis dying before the 
queen, she substituted his brother Regnier. When Joanna 
died, Regnier was a prisoner in Burgundy; but his wife 
maintained his cause with spirit. Fortune, however, sided 
with Alfonso, and he founded the Aragonite line at Naples. 
Alfonso, having no lawful issue, was anxious to transmit Na- 
ples to his illegitimate son Ferdinand. Chiefly with this 
view he became a party with Sforza duke of Milan, and the 
republics of Venice and Florence, in the quadruple league, l45i> 
28* 



330 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT. 

for the maintenance of peace in Italy ; and the pope and the 

Neapolitan parliament contirmed the succession of Forainand. 

A. D. But the character of this prince was dark and vindictive, and 

1461. the barons offered the crown to John, son of Regnier of An- 

jou, who made an ineffectual attempt to obtain it. 

Germany. 

273. After Germany had been three-and-twenty years without a 
head, the electors fixed on Rodolf of Habsburg, a prince of 
ancient family and of considerable possessions in Switzerland, 
and along the Upper Rhine. Rodolf was an able, sensible 
monarch, and he turned all his efforts to the establishing of 
peace and tranquillity within the empire. He naturally 
sought to aggrandize his family. The rebellion of Ottocar, 
king of Bohemia, gave him the disposal of Austria, Syria 

1283. and Carniola, which, with the consent of the diet, he bestowed 
on his son Albert, and Carinthia on Meinhard landgraf of 
Tyrol, whose daughter Albert married. This was the origin 
of the possessions of the house of Austria. 

The electors refused to choose Albert king of the Romans 

1291. in his father's lifetiniB ; and on the death of Rodolf they 
gave the imperial dignity to Adolf of Nassau. Albert, how- 
ever, raised a strong party against him, and got himself 

1298. elected. Adolf fought for his dignity, but fell, as was said, 
by the hand of Albert. Albert was active, ambitious, un- 
quiet, but unsuccessful in his projects, and hated by his neigh- 

1308. bors and subjects. He was murdered by his nephew John, 
from whom he withheld his inheritance. Some of the princes, 
are said to have been consenting to the deed. 

1309. Henry VII. of Luxemburg was elected. His reign is 
chiefly distinguished by his attempts to establish the imperial 
authority in Italy. In this he met some partial success, but 
died suddenly in the midst of his projects. 

1314 Louis of Bavaria was chosen by one part of the electors, 
Frederic of Austria by another. The battle of Miihldorf 

1322. finally decided in favor of Louis. This emperor also crossed 
the Alps to contend against the pope and Robert king of Na- 
ples ; but he derived little credit from his expedition : his 
whole reign was occupied in the contest with the holy see. 

1347. Charles IV,, son of John king of Bohemia, next purchased 
the empire. This monarch loved pomp and parade, and lived 
355. in great splendor. He annexed Brandenburg' and Silesia to 
Bohemia. By, his Golden Bull he ascertained the preroga- 
tives of the electoral college. He procured his son Wences- 
laus to be appointed his successor. 

^378, Wenceslaus was addicted to pleasure. His Bohemian no^ 




The Temple at Paris— Residence of the Knights Templats. 



331 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 333 

bles, thinking he favored the people too much, confined him, a. d. 
under the pretext of his violence and immorality, and gave 1394 
him in custody to the duke of Austria. He escaped. The )400, 
spiritual electors and the palatine deposed him, and he gave 
a v^illing assent to this act, satisfied with his paternal king- 
dom of Bohemia. 

Frederic duke of Brunswick was chosen in his stead, but 
was murdered immediately afterwards by his private enemies. 
Rupert, palatine of the Rhine, was then chosen. On his 
death, the choice fell on Jobst of Luxemburg, margraf of Mo- HIO 
ravia. He, too, died within a short time, and all the voices 
declared for Sigismund, brother of Wenceslaus, and king of 
Hungary. 

Few princes have united more crowns than Sigismund. 
By his first wife, Mary of Anjou, he got Hungary, Dalmatia, 
Bosnia : his brother left him Bohemia ; the pope gave him the 
imperial crown, and to these he joined Moravia, Lusatia, 
Brandenburg, and Silesia. The chief stain on the memory of 
Sigismund is his violation of the safe-conduct given to Huss 
when going to Constance. This involved him in an eighteen 1414. 
years' war against Zisca, Procopius, and the other Hussite 
leaders. Sigismund had been engaged in war with the Otto- 
mans, and narrowly escaped being taken by them at Nico- 13%. 
polis. His poverty obliged him to sell several of the imperial 
rights and claims. 

The imperial dignity now passed to the house of Austria, 
there to continue. Albert duke of Austria had married the 
heiress of Sigismund. But the Hungarians made it a condi- 
tion at his coronation that he would not accept the imperial 
crown. The Bohemians also made conditions with him. The 1437 
electors vainly tried to induce the margraf of Brandenburg to 
accept the crown. At length the Hungarians gave their con- 
sent, and Albert was elected emperor; but just as he was en- 1438. 
gaging in active hostilities with the Turks, he was surprised 1439 
by death. 

Ladislaus, the posthumous son of Albert, succeeded his 1440 
father in Hungary and Bohemia. Albert's socond cousin, 
Frederic duke of Styria, was chosen emperor. His long reigr 
of fifty-three years occupied the most interesting part of the 
fifteenth century. He was an insignificant prince, yet he had 
influence enough to have his son Maximilian electetl! king of 
the Romans during hir^ life ; and his posterity still possess the 
dominions of the house of Austria, all of which were reunited 1493 
in his time, or in that of his son. 



S34 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART 11. 

Switzerland. 

Switzerland formed a part of the kingdom of Aries or Bur- 
A. I), gundy, and, with the rest of the dominions of R.odolf, was 
1032. united to the German empire. It contained a numerous and 
powerful nobility, and several rich ecclesiastical lords. Its 
towns of Zuric, Basle, Berne, and Friburg' rose into import- 
ance. Among the nobles, the counts of Habsburg gradually 
became the most powerful : they were advocates to several 
convents, some of which had estates in the forest-cantons of 
Schwytz and Underwald. The people of these cantons re- 
posed confidence in Rodolf, the first emperor of the house of 
Habsburg : they distrusted his son Albert, who justified their 
suspicions ; for, not satisfied with the rights which, as advo- 
cate to the convents, he possessed over a part of the forest- 
cantons, he, when elected emperor, sent imperial bailifls to 
administer justice in the whole of these cantons. The people 
were indignant at this attempt to reduce them to servitude. 
Three men, Stauffacher of Schwytz, Furst of Uri, Melchthal 
of Underwald, each with ten companions, met by night in a 
secret valley, and swore to assert the liberty of their country. 
1308. The three cantons rose in arms, and expelled the imperial 
officers. Albert was shortly afterwards assassinated by his 
nephew. Henry VII., the next emperor, was little inclined 
to strengthen the house of Austria ; but Leopold, the son of 
Albert, led a considerable force into the mountains, and was 
utterly defeated by those brave peasants at Morgarten, the 
1315. Marathon of Switzerland. 

Lucerne now joined the confederacy : before the middle of 
the fourteenth century it was augmented by the accession of 
Zurich, Berne, Zug, and Glaris. These eight were called 
the ancient cantons. Friburg, Soleure, Basle, Schaffhausen, 
and Appenzel afterwards became parts of the body. 7'he 
same conflict as wds carried on in Lombardy between the 
cities and the rural nobility prevailed here, and with the 
same results. The house of Austria sold the greater part of 
its possessions to Zurich and Berne. The abbot of St. Gall, 
and the remaining lay and spiritual lords, entered into leagues 
with different cantons. At the beginning of the fifteenth 
century, Switzerland was acknowledged as a free indepen 
dent country. Their defeats of Louis XI. and the duke of 
Burgundy placed the Swiss as soldiers in the very first rank. 

France. 

270. On the death of St. Louis, his son Philip III., the Bold, 
who had accompanied him, made peace with Tunis, and re- 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 335 

turned to Frcnce. Philip engaged in a war with Aragon, a. d. 
m defence of his uncle, Charles of Anjou*s claim to Sicily; in 1270. 
which war he did not meet with much success. On the 
death of his uncle Alfonso, who had been invested with the 
county of Poitou, and part of Auvergne and Saintonge, and 
who also held in right of his wife, heiress of Raymond VII. 
of Toulouse, the remains of that fief, Philip reunited the 
whole to the crown of France. 

Philip IV., ^he Fair, a rapacious and ambitious prince, at- 12 
tempted to reunite, by force, some of the remaining great 
fiefs. He outwitted Edward I. of England, and got possession 
of Guienne, which he held for some time. He acted with 
similar injustice in the case of Flanders ; but the total defeat 
of his army at Courtray by the Flemings gave a check to his 1302. 
injustice in that quarter. On a sentence of forfeiture passed 
against the count, Philip took possession of Angouleme and 
)ja Marche ; he also acquired the city of Lyons and its terri- 
tory, which had been given by Louis IV. with his daughter 
Matilda to the king of Burgundy, and had gone with that king- 
dom to the empire in 1(K32. Frederic Barbarossa, having given 
all the royal rights over the city to the archbishop, St. Louis 
was called in as a mediator between the chapter and the city, 
as also was Philip III., who forced the new archbishop to take 
an oath of fealty to himself At length a spirited archbishop 
resisted this usurpation, and Philip IV. laid siege to the city, 1310. 
which submitted, and was united to the crown. 

Philip the Fair was the first king who convoked the states- 1302. 
general, or the representatives of the three estates of the 
kingdom. They were first convened to give weight to the 
king's cause in his dispute with Boniface VIII. ; afterwards 1314. 
for the imposition of taxes. The reign of Philip was dis- 
graced by the suppression of the order of Knights Templars, 1311. 
and the barbarous tortures inflicted on its most distinguished 
members. Philip had three sons, Louis Hutin, Philip the 
Ijong, and Charles the Fair, all of whom reigned in France ; 
and one daughter Isabella, married to Edward II. of England. 

Louis X., Hutin, survived his father but a year. He left 1314 
one daughter, Jane, and his queen pregnant. Louis had pos- 
sessed, by his mother, the kingdom of Navarre, and the coun- 
ties of Champagne and Brie. His brother Philip assumed the 
regency of both France and Navarre, and then made a treaty 
with the duke of Burgundy, uncle of Jane, by which it was 
agreed, that if the queen should have a daughter, the two 
princesses, or the survivor, should take the inheritance of 
their grandmother, and renounce all right to the crown of 
France. But this was not to take place till they had attained 



336 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT. 

the age of consent, when, if they should refuse, their claim 
was to remain, and right to he done them,. Philip was mean- 
time, as governor, to receive the homage of the vassals, and 
govern all these realms. In case of the birth of a male heir, 
the treaty was not to take effect. The queen brought forth 
a son, who died withm four days. The treaty was now evi- 
dently become absolute, and Philip should have governed, as 
regent or governor, till Jane came of age to accept or refuse 

A D. the contract made by her uncle. But, instead of so doing 

1317. Philip went to Rheims, and had himself crowned, though o] 
posed by the duke of Burgundy and by his own brother 
Charles. He thence went to Paris and convened an assembly 
of prelates, barons, and burgesses of that city, who declared 
him their lawful sovereign. The duke of Burgundy defend- 
ed the rights of his niece, till, on the prospect of a marriage 
with the daughter of Philip, he gave up, in her name, not 
only her claim to France, but her right to Navarre and 
Champagne. This is the first occasion on which the right 
of females to the crown of France was ever discussed. 

1322. Philip died, leaving three daughters, and his brother 
Charles mounted the throne. Charles, on his death, left hia 
queen pregnant. Philip of Valois, grandson of Philip the 
Bold, took the regency, and on the queen bringing forth a 

1328. daughter, he was crowned king. So that the principle of the 
exclusion of females was now fully established. No com- 
petitor appeared in France ; but Edward III. of England put 
in a claim in right of his mother, Isabella, sister to the last 
three kings. In every point of view this claim was unjust. 
If the Salic law was not valid, the claims of the daughters 
of the last three monarchs were superior to his ; if it was 
valid, all female claims were alike extinguished. But Ed- 
ward maintained that though a female could not inherit her- 
self, she could transmit a title to her male issue ; yet here 
again he was foiled ; for, admitting this distinction, which is 
contrary to all rule, Jane, daughter of Louis Hutin, was mar- 
ried and had a son who was nearer to the crown than Ed- 
ward. The English monarch, however, thought himself 
strong enough to make his claim good by force of arms, and 
he commenced that series of wars between France and Eng- 
land which lasted during a space of 120 years, and cost so 
much blood and treasure to both. In the reign of Philip the 
crown acquired Dauphine, left to it by the will of the last of 
its princes, on condition of the king's eldest son being styled 
Dauphin. 

,360 After the taking of Calais by Edward a truce was con- 
cluded, during which Philip died, and was succeeded by his 




29 



837 



> 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 339 

son John, a prince in every way deserving of a better fortune 
than h(j experienced. During the captivity of Johi^ after 
the unfortunate battle of Poitiers, France v^^as in a most 
wretched state : the peasantry, driven to madness by the op- 
pression and insolence of their lords, broke out into the cele- j^^_ j,. 
brated insurrection called the Jacquerie^ and every horrid 1358 
enormity was perpetrated by them. Charles, son of John, 
the regent of France, now agreed to the peace of Bretigni, 
and John was liberated. On some difficulty arising with 
respect to some of the articles, this honorable prmce returned 
to England to adjust them. He died while there at the Savoy 1364 
palace. 

Charles V., the Wise, turned all his thoughts to restorinigr 
France to her former state of power and independence. He 
broke the peace of Bretigni, and stripped the English of 
nearly all their possessions in that country. This able, judi- 
cious, and excellent monarch was, unfortunately for France, 1380 
carried off by death, leaving one son, a boy of thirteen years, 
under the care of three ambitious uncles, the dukes of Anjou, 
Berri, and Burgundy. 

During the minority of Charles VL the nation was dread- 
fully harassed by excessive taxes, which were wantonly ex- 
pended. Seditions broke out in Paris and elsewhere, which 
were severely punished. When Charles assumed the reins 1389 
of government, his new ministers proved equally oppressive. 
A few years afterwards the intellect of the king became de- 1393 
ranged, and was never fully restored. The princes returned 
to power. Burgundy was at the head of affairs, but was op- 
posed by the duke of Orleans the king's brother. The duke U04 
of Burgundy dying, was succeeded by his son named John 
Sans Peur : he and the duke of Orleans were reconciled ; 
but soon after the latter was assassinated in the streets of 1407. 
Paris, and the duke of Burgundy avowed the deed. The queen 
and all the princes of the blood united against the assassin ; 
yet such was his power, that after making a slight apology 
to the king, he was pardoned, and obtained the management 
of affairs. The princes took arms under the father-in-law of 
the young duke of Orleans, the count of Armagnac, fi-om 
whom their party was named. The dauphin played the two 
factions against each other ; but he and his next brother dying, 
the rank fell to Charles, the king's youngest son. Armagnac, 
now constable of France, was at the head of affairs. His 141% 
severity revived the Burgundian party in Paris ; he made the 
queen, the infamous Isabel of Bavaria, his enemy, by detect- 
uig her gallantries. She joined her old foe, the duke of Bur- 



340 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT- 

gundy, A horrid insurrection was excited in Paris, and 

J418. Armagnac and all his party, to the number of three or four 
thousand, were massacred in one day. A reconciliation now 
took place between the duke of Burgundy and the dauphin ; 
but, at their interview, the duke was murdered by some of 
the attendants of the latter. 

Henry V. had renewed the war with France, had won the 
battle of Azincourt, and conquered Normandy. Filled with 
rage against the supposed author of the murder, the whole 
of the Burgundian party, with Philip, son of the late duke, at 
their head, and joined by the queen, agreed to the treaty of 

1420. Troyes with Henry, in which it was stipulated that on his 
marriage with Catherine, daughter of Charles VI., he should 
become regent, and succeed to the kingdom on the death of 
his father-in-law, to the exclusion of the dauphin and all the 
princes of the blood. Henry, during two years, governed the 
north of France, and his infant son, Henry VL, was, on the 

1422. death of Charles, proclaimed king of France and England. 

Charles VII. was acknowledged only in the central prov- 
inces and in Languedoc, Poitou, and Dauphine. The duke 
of Bedford governed with vigor for young Henry, and the war 
was carried on to the advantage of the English. Charles, 
though brave and talented, was sunk in despair and pleasure. 
At length, the heroic Maid of Orleans appeared ; the affairs 
of Charles took a new turn ; Burgundy returned to his duty, 

J449 and the English were expelled from France. Master of his 
kingdom, Charles turned all his thoughts to restoring and 
extending the royal authority. He suppressed some risings 
of the nobles, and he formed his celebrated companies of or- 
dinance, a body of about 9000 cavalry, the first standing army 
maintained in Europe. 

1461. Louis XL, the Tiberius of France, showed the power es- 
tablished by his father to be a despotism. The nobility saw 

1464. ^^ approaching ruin of their independence. A confederacy, 
named The League of the Public Weal, was formed against 
the crown, in which all the princes and great vassals shared, 
headed by the king's brother, Charles duke of Berri. By the 
peace of Conflans Louis was compelled to give Charles the 
duchy of Normandy as an appanage ;* but he soon deprived 

1442 him of it, and at last gave him Guienne, where he died. 
• Having diverted by money the invasion of Edward IV. of 
England, Louis turned all his thoughts to oppose the duke of 
Burgundy. 

* An appanage was a provision made for a younger son of a king of 
France. It generally consisted of an extensive fief held of the crown. 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 341 

John h^^d given the duchy of Burgundy as an appanage to 
his third son Philip, and by marriage with the heiress of 
the count of Flanders he had gotten that province, Artois, 
Franche-Comte, and the Nivernois. Philip the Good, his grand- 
son, had acquired all the other provinces that compose the 
Netherlands. Charles the Bold, the present duke, was proud 
and ambitious : he engaged in war with Lorraine with suc- 
cess ; but being offended with the Swiss, he attacked them, a. d, 
and was defeated at Granson, in the Pays de Vaud, and again 1476k 
at Morat, near Friburg, with prodigious loss. This day broke 
the power of Burgundy : Charles, with inferior forces, gave 
at Nancy battle to the duke of Lorraine, and perished in the 1477 
fight. 

Charles left an only child, a daughter, named Mary. The 
true policy of Louis was evidently to obtain her in marriage 
for the dauphin ; but he preferred setting up a claim to the 
duchy, as having been an appanage, and therefore incapable 
of descent to females ; and he seized on Artois and Franche- 
Comte. This and other acts of perfidy incensed Mary, 
and she married Maximilian, son of the emperor of Germany. 
Mary did not long survive: she left a son, Philip, and a daugh- 1477 
ter, Margaret. At the peace of Arras, the latter was con- 
tracted to the dauphin, and Franche-Comte and Artois were 1482. 
to be her dower. In this reign Provence was united to the 
French crown, by the will of Charles of Anjou. ' 

Charles VIIL was but thirteen years of age on the death 148a 
of his father. Louis had appointed his daughter Anne, mar- 
ried to the lord of Beaujeu, to be regent. This was contested 
with her by the duke of Orleans, afterwards Louis XIL ; but 
the lady of Beaujeu stood her ground, and ruled France, in 
spite of the Orleans party and their ally the duke of Britany. 

This last duke, like the duke of Burgundy, died leaving an 
only daughter. Her hand was sought by the duke of Orleans, 
whom she preferred herself, by the lord of Albret, of the 
family of Foix, and by Maximilian king of the Romans, now 
a widower. The French regent carried on a vigorous war 
against Britany. The duchess Anne, having no other means 
of escaping Albret, was married by proxy to Maximilian; but 1489 
was ultimately compelled to espouse Charles VIIL, who waa 
already betrothed to the daughter of Maximilian. This last 
v^ras enraged at the slight put on himself and his daughter, 
but was appeased by Charles restoring Artois and Franche- 
Comte. 

Thus was France, at length, consolidated into one great 
monarchy : the feudal system was at an end ; no internal dis- 
29* 



342 HISTORY or the world. part II. 

turbaiices were to be found, and she could now enter with 
dignity on the large theatre of Europe. 

England — The Plantagenets. 

1274. Edward I., from the commencement of his reign, directed 
his attention to the correction of abuses and the exact admin 
istration of the laws. While thus engaged, an opportunity 
offered of interfering in Wales, and he reduced that country 

282. under the crown of England, from which it has never since 
been separated. A dispute arising about the right to the snc- 
cession to the Scottish crown, that nation referred the ques 
tion to Edward. The English king appeared with a large 
army on the frontiers, advanced a claim of feudal superiority 
over that kingdom, to which the Scots were forced to submit, 
and he then gave the crown to the candidate whose claim 

1296. appeared best founded. The Scots soon after took arms foi 
their independence. Edward entered and conquered the 
whole country ; but still the spirit of the nation rose, and Ed- 
ward died on an expedition against that kingdom. It is 
gratifying to see vice punish itself: by his eagerness in this 
flagrantly unjust attempt on Scotland, Edward nearly lost 
Guienne to the French king ; the parliament, of which the 
commons were now become an essential part, acquired vigor, 

1299. and the king was forced to give the Confirmation of the Char- 
ters by which the charters of Liberties and of the Forests 
were confirmed, and to bind himself to levy no contributions 
without the consent of the people. Edward was a monarch 
of great talent and capacity. 

1307 Edward II. was the very opposite of his father ; he aban- 
doned himself entirely to the direction of his favorites, at first 
of Piers Gavestone, and, after his death, of Hugh Spencer. 
In his wars with Scotland he reaped nothing but disgrace. 
His army was utterly defeated by the Scots at Bannockburn. 
Edward was married to Isabella, daughter of the king of 
France. She and the nobles conspired and deposed the king, 
and he was barbarously murdered by his keepers at Berkeley 
castle. A mild, inoffensive prince, he was unfit for those tur- 
bulent times. 

»327. Edward HI. was but fourteen years old when his father 
was deposed, and the queen was declared regent during his 
minority. She and her paramour Mortimer governed with 
such tyranny, that Edward was enabled to seize the reins of 
government, and to have Mortimer executed for his crimes. 
Unjust and expensive wars with France and Scotland, in 
which, no doubt, brilliant victories were gained, occupied 
nearly the whole of this reign. Owing to the king's conse- 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER, 343 

qucnt great demand for supplies, parliament increased in 
power and influence, and three great principles were estab- 
lished ; to wit, the illegality of raising money without con- 
sent ; the necessity of the concurrence of the two houses for 
any alteration of the laws ; and the right of the commons to 
inquire into public abuses, and to impeach ministers. Edward 
instituted the order of the Garter. His reign was the noon 
of chivalry, of which himself and his son, the Black Prince, 
were the mirrors. 

Richard II., son of the Black Prince, succeeded his grand- 137 
father, at the age of eleven years. In the fifth year of his 
reign broke out, in consequence of oppressive taxation, the 1381 
great insurrection of the villeins, headed by Wat Tyler, Jack 
Straw, and others, in the suppression of which the king 
showed such courage and presence of mind as gave great 
hopes of his future excellence. But these hopes were de- 
ceived : Richard was proud, indolent, fond of pomp and ex- 
pense, and attached to favorites. Various methods were em- 
ployed to restrain him, but without effect : he had succeeded 
in obtaining power nearly absolute, when the duke of Here- 
ford, who had been unjustly banished, returned, during the 
king's absence in Ireland, to claim the inheritance of his 
father, the duke of Lancaster. All ranks and orders flocked 
to his standard ; the king, on his return, was deserted by bis 
troops ; he threw himself into Flint castle, where, induced 
by the base treachery and perjury of the earl of Northum- 
berland, he surrendered. He was led to London, deposed by 
parliament, forced to abdicate, confined in Pomfret castle, and 
there murdered. 1399 

Richard had no children; he had declared his cousin, Roger 
Mortimer, earl of March, son of Philippa, only daughter of 
Lionel duke of Clarence, second son to Edward III., his suc- 
cessor. Roger was killed in Ireland, and his eldest son was 
a boy of but seven years of age. Henry duke of Lancaster 
was son to John, third son of Edward III. ; he had therefore 
evidently no right to the crown. But on the deposition of 
Richard he made a challenge of the crown, in terms in which 
were strangely mingled right of descent,* conquest, and 
merit. At all events, he was placed on the throne by the 
unanimous voice of lords and commons; and as with Henry's 
small means it is idle to talk offeree, he was plainly a lawful 

* It was a vulgar notion that Edmund earl of Lancaster, and not Edward 
I., was the eldest son of Henry IIL; but on account of some personal dr 
fcrmity, he had been set aside, and his brother imposed on the nation. Thrt 
present duke of Lancaster was his heir by his mother; and if that stoi/ 
wae true he was the true heir to the crown. 



344 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT, 

monarch, and no usurper. The constitution, however, re 
A. D. ceived advantage from the defect in his title, and the com- 
1402. mons advanced greatly in importance and influence. The 
Percies rebelled against Henry ; but he defeated theii and 
their allies at Shrewsbury, and effectually crushed them. His 
government was firm and vigorous, and advantageous to thr 
nation ; and, but for the crimes by which the crown was ac- 
quired, he would be deserving of esteem as a monarch. His 
mind is said to have been harassed by remorse for what he 
had done, and no acts of unnecessary cruelty sully his reign. 
1431. Henry V. succeeded with universal favor. He was young, 
brave, affable, and generous. He had not been long on the 
throne when he engaged in his wars with France, which 
gave England the pride of Azincourt, and placed his son on 
the throne of that country. In the midst of his glory he died 
in his thirty-fourth year at Paris. 
1422. Henry VI. being but a year old at his accession, his uncles, 
the dukes of Bedford and Gloucester, administered the public 
affairs, and the bishop of Winchester had charge of the king's 
person. Notwithstanding the great abilities of the duke of 
Bedford, the English affairs declined in France, and before 
the king was of age, nearly all the acquisitions of his father 
in that country were lost. After the death of the duke of 
Bedford, the duke of Gloucester and the bishop of Winches- 
ter, now a cardinal, contended for the direction of the king's 
1443. councils. In the affair of the young monarch's marriage the 
cardinal was victorious, and married him to Margaret of An 
jou, daughter of Regnier, titular king of Naples, a princess 
of masculine spirit and great ability and address. The duke 
1447 of Gloucester was afterwards thrown into prison and mur- 
dered, a deed in which his uncle the cardinal, and perhaps 
the queen, was deeply concerned. 

A claimant to the crown now appeared. Richard duke of 
York was son to the earl of Cambridge, by Anne, sister of 
the late earl of March, in whom ended the ma:les of the house 
of Mortimer. The rights of that family, therefore, centered 
in the duke of York, who was thus descended by his mother 
from the only daughter of the duke of Clarence, second son 
of Edward III. ; whereas the king was descended from the 
duke of Lancaster, third son of that monarch. The duke of 
York was a man of most amiable manners, of large posses- 
sions, of extensive connexions and influence. The loss of 
France, the hatred of the king's ministers, and, above all, the 
murder of the duke of Gloucester, had alienated the affec- 
tions of the people. A large body of the nobility, and the 
c Tunons in general, sided with the duke of York, and re- 




345 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 347 

course was hid to arms. The battle of St. Alban's gained a. d 
by the Yorkists, was the commencement of a struggle which 145f» 
lasted thirty years, and in which were fought twelve pitclied 
battles. The battles of Blore-heath and Northampton were 1460 
gained by the York party. In the last the king was taken 
prisoner : but the spirit of Margaret was unbroken ; she col- 
lected a large army, to which the duke of York was impru- 
dent enough to give battle at Wakefield, where he was de- 
feated and slain. Here the queen and her friends commenced 
that ferocious system which, being imitated by the other party, 
casts on these wars such an aspect of horror and barbarity. 
The head of the duke of York was cut off, and fixed on the 
gates of York ; his son, the earl of Rutland, was murdered 
in cold blood ; the earl of Salisbury and other noblemen were 
executed by martial law. 

The claims of the duke descended to his son Edward, who 
gained the battle of Mortimer's Cross. The Yorkists were 1461 
defeated at St. Alban's. Edward now assumed the crown by 
a somewhat irregular popular election. 

Edward IV. was handsome, brave, affable; but licentious, 
and barbarously cruel. The Lancastrians were defeated with 
great slaughter at Towton. Henry and Margaret fled to Scot- 1461 
land ; but the indefatigable queen went to France, and in- 
ducing Louis XL to assist her with some troops and money, 
she returned and raised another army, but was again totally 1464 
defeated at Hexham. Margaret fled to France, and Henry, 
being discovered, was thrown into the Tower. The hopes 
of the Lancastrians seemed now quite crushed, when a cool- 
ness arising between Edward and the great earl of Warwick, 
called the king-maker, the latter entered into a treaty with 
Margaret, and drove Edward out of the kingdom, and re- 
stored Henry ; but in less than six months Edward returned, 
and Warwick was defeated and slain at the battle of Barnet. 
The very day of this battle, Margaret and her son, prince 1471 
Edward, landed at Weymouth. Though at first overwhelmed 
at the tidings of the defeat and death of Warwick, she re- 
sumed her wonted spirit, collected an army, and marched to 
Tewkesbury. Here fortune proved once more adverse ; the 
Lancastrian army was totally routed, the queen and prince 
taken, and the latter murdered, almost in the presence of Ed- 
ward. Henry soon afterwards died, murdered, as was said, 
by the duke of Gloucester in the Tower, and the hopes of the 
Lancastrians now seemed extinct. 

Edward V. was, it is said, with his brother the duke of 14 
York, murdered in the Tower by their uncle, the duke of 
Gloucester, who usurped the crown under the title of Rich- 



348 HISTOKY OF THE WORLD. PART TI. 

ard ITT. The duke of Buckingham, who had aided Richard 
in his projects, being discontented, invited over the earl of 
Richmond, who had sheltered himself in Britany ; but hav- 
ing taken arms before the arrival of this nobleman, he was 
seized and executed by order of Richard. Richmond at his 
landing was joined by many ; Richard hastened to oppose 

^. D him : the engagement took place on the field of Bosworth. 

486. Richard was slain fighting bravely, and Richmond was sa- 
luted king on the field of battle, by the title of Henry VII. 
With Richard III. ended the line of Plantagenet, which had 
governed England with glory, on the whole, during three cen- 
turies. The new house was called that of Tudor, from the 
family name of Henry VII. 

The title of Henry was exposed to all the defects in the 
original Lancastrian title ; and even supposing that to be 
good, he was not the true heir of that family ; for he claimed 
through his mother Margaret, sole heiress of the duke of 
Somerset, sprung from John of Gaunt, duke of Lancaster ; 
but the line of Somerset derived from, one of the children of 
John of Gaunt, by Catherine Swynford, during the life of 
his duchess, and was therefore illegitimate, and even adulte- 
rous ; and though Richard II. had legitimated these children, 
they were never conceived to have any claim to the crown ; 
and farther, the mother of Henry was still alive. Edward 
IV. had left daughters, of whose title there could be no doubt, 
and Henry was to be married to Elizabeth, the eldest of them; 
but he had an aversion to that family, and he would not ap- 
pear to owe his crown to his wife. During all his reign he 
was very tender on this subject of his title. 

i486. After a good deal of delay, he married the princess Eliza- 
beth, but he never loved her. The duchess of Burgundy, 
sister of Edward IV., raised up two impostors against him, 
each pretending to be Richard duke of York,* who had es- 
caped from the Tower ; but the vigilance of the king easily 
crushed all attempts against his crown. The chief defect in 
Henry's character was avarice ; his great object was the de- 
pression of the nobility, a point the more easily to be effect- 
ed, as most of them had perished in the civil wars. The 
landed proprietors obtained power to alienate their estates; 
and as commerce had greatly increased, luxury extended, 
and many of the commons had amassed wealth, the object 
nearest Henry's heart was rapidly effected, though we are 

* The fate of this prince and his brother is involved in singular mystery 
It may very reasonably be doubted whether Perkin Warbeck was an iinpo» 
tor or not. 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 349 

not, perhaps, to compliment his sagacity with having fore- 
seen it. 

Wars hetioeen France and England. 

As they were now at an end, the present seems a good oc- 
casion of giving a consecutive view of these useless and dis- 
astrous wars. 

When Edward III. laid claim to the crown of France,* his a. d. 
first care was to strengthen himself by alliances with the ^^^ 
duke of Brabant, the count of Hainault, his father-in-law, 
and other princes near the Rhine ; and as the English had 
been for some time connected by trade with the Flemings, 
and that people, who were in rebellion against their earl, 
were governed by James van Artiveld, a brewer of Ghent, 
Edward sought to gain that demagogue to his side, and he 
succeeded in his object. Thus supported, Edward collected 
an army, and entered France ; but nothing of moment oc- 1339 
curred in this first campaign, and the funds of the English 
monarch being exhausted, he was obliged to return home. 
The following year Edward gained a naval victory over the 
French, and entered France at the head of 100,000 men ; 
but Philip declined engaging, and a truce was concluded for 
a year. During the truce, affairs took such a turn in Britany 
as engaged the two kingdoms again in war. Charles of Blois, 
nephew to the French king, had married the daughter of the 
duke of Britany, upon whose death the count de Montford, 
the next heir male, seized the duchy. Feeling he could not 
hold it agamst the power of France, he went over to Eng- 
land, and offered to do homage for it to Edward. Edward 
accepted the proposal, and sent over troops to assist his vas- 
sal. Montford had meantime been taken prisoner; but his 
wife maintained his cause with masculine energy. This strug- 
gle was terminated by a truce for three years, on honorable 1343, 
terms for Edward and the countess. 

The truce was broken the next year. Edward invaded 1344 
Normandy with an army of 30,000 men. Philip advanced 1346 
at the head of 90,000. The English king, fearing to be sur- 
rounded, retreated towards Flanders. The bridges over the 
Somme were broken down, and a French force was on the 
opposite side ; but the English, having discovered a ford, 
passed over and drove off the French. As the rear-guard of 
the English was passing, the army of Philip came up ; but, 
the tide rising, it could not pass, and had to go round by the 
bridge of Abbeville. Fearing to march over the plains of 



30 



• See D 226 



350 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IT 

Picardy, exposed to the numerous cavalry of the French, 
Edward resolved to give battle, and he drew up his troops in 
three lines on a rising* ground near the village of Crecy : the 
French advanced also in three lines ; but they were fatigued 
with their march, and disol-dered. The battle began about 
three o'clock in the day (Aug. 26), and ended in a complete 
victory on the part of the English. The French lost 40,000 
men, among whom were several of the nobility, 1200 knights, 
and 1400 gentlemen, 
/j; Edward now invested Calais, which surrendered after a 
VA" eiege of twelve months. The inhabitants were expelled, and 
the town peopled with English. A truce was concluded, 
which the dreadful plague that ravaged Europe at that time 
caused to be prolonged. 

During the truce Philip died, and was succeeded by his 
son John. Charles king of Navarre, surnamed the Bad, son 
of Jane, daughter of Louis Hutin, entered secretly into cor- 
respondence with the king of England, into which he drew 
even the dauphin ; but that prince afterwards repenting, be- 
trayed the king of Navarre to his father, who threw him into 
prison. Philip, brother of the king of Navarre, put all his 
fortresses into a state of defence, and called on Edward for 

1356 assistance. The war was renewed. 

Edward the Black Prince, eldest son of the king of Eng- 
land, commanded in Guienne. He ventured with an army 
of 12,000 men to advance into the French territory. John 
collected a force of 60,000 men, and came up with him at 
Maupertuis, near Poitiers. The Black Prince offered to sur- 
render his conquests for a safe retreat : he was refused : he 
then prepared for battle, and drew up his little army with the 
utmost skill (Sep. 19). The usual impetuosity of the French 
hurried them to the attack, and the battle ended in the utter 
rout of the French army, and the captivity of their king. 
The generosity of the Black Prince to his captive, only 
paralleled by that of Alp Arslan,* is well known. Jolm was 

1357. led to Bourdeaux, and thence to England, and a truce was 
concluded for two years. 

France was now in a complete state of anarchy ; but the 
truce and the want of money prevented Edward's deriving 
any advantage from it. At the expiration of the truce, he 
invaded and ravaged that kingdom ; but finding he could not 
make a durable impression, he concluded the peace of Bre- 

13^. tigni. The terms of this peace were, that John should pay 
three millions of crowns of gold for his ransom ; that Edward 

* See p 189. 




Tbo Black Prince entertaining his prisoner, King John of France. 



351 



CHAP. VIT. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 353 

should give up all claim to the crown of France, and to Nor- 
mandy, Touraine, Maine, and Anjou, for which he was to re- 
ceive Poitou, Saintono-e, Lagenois, Perigord, the Limousin, 
Quercy, and other neighboring places, with Calais, Guisnes, 
Montreuil, and Ponthieu ; all in full sovereignty, no homage 
for them or Guienne to be due to the crown of France. 

Charles V. succeeding John, who died soon after the peace 
of Bretigni, the terms of which were never executed, some 
of til . Gascon nobles appealed to him, as the superior lord, 
a gah st the heavy taxes laid on them by the Black Prince, in 
consequence of his expedition to Spain. That able monarch, 
who nad now terminated the disorders of his kingdom, sum- 
moned the prince to appear in his court at Paris to answer 
the complaint of his vassals. Edward replied that he would, 
but it would be at the head of 60,000 men. But his health 
was declining ; he was obliged to return to England ; and a. d. ' 
the war terminated in the English being stripped of Guienne. 1370. 
except Bourdeaux and Bayonne, and of all their conquests but 
Calais. 

During the reign of Richard II. the war was carried on 
lang-uidly. One of its most remarkable events was the duke 
of Gloucester, the king's uncle, having the hardihood to march 1380 
out of Calais at the head of 2000 horse and 8000 foot, enter 
the heart of France, and ravage all the country till he joined 
his allies in Britany. The duke of Burgundy came within 
sight with a much superior army ; but such was the terror 
the French felt of the English, that he did not venture to 
attack them. Some years afterwards, the king of France 1386 
made preparations for invading England ; but his fleet was 
dispersed by a storm, and many of the ships taken by the 
English. The Gascons put themselves, in this reign, once 
more under the government of England. Both parties were 
now anxious for peace; but as the terms could not be ad- 1396 
justed, they agreed on a truce for twenty-five years, and 
Richard was affianced to Isabella, daughter of Charles, b 
princess only seven years old. 

On the murder of Richard, the French king made some 1401. 
show of avenging his death ; but on the princess Isabella being 
given up, he renewed the truce with Henry IV. Towards 
the end of his reign Henry began to take some part in the 
quarrels of the Orleans and Burgundy factions in France: he 1411 
sent a small body of troops to the aid of the latter, and after- 
wards a larger to that of the former. 

Henry IV. had when dying exhorted his son not to let the 1415 
Englisii nation remain long at rest. Henry V. therefore, 
30=^ 



354 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

taking advantage of the distracted state of France,* sent am- 
bassadors to Paris with most exorbitant proposals. He de- 
manded the crown of France (or at least reserved his right to 
it), Normandy, Touraine, Maine, Guienne, and the homage 
of Britany and Flanders, the princess Catherine in marriage, 
and 2,000,000 crowns of gold as her dower, and the arrear 
of king John's ransom. The French offered him Guienne 
and Saintonge, and a dower of 800,000 crowns. Henry forth- 
with prepared for war; he collected a fleet and army, con- 
sisting of 6000 men-at-arms and 24,000 foot, at Southampton, 
landed in Normandy, and took the town of Harfleur. Having 
dismissed his transports, he was obliged to march his army to 
Calais by land. An army of 14,000 men-at-arms and 40,000 
foot, under the constable d'Albert, was now collected in Nor- 
mandy. Henry offered to give up Harfleur for a safe passage 
to Calais: this offer was rejected: he marched by slow jour- 
neys till he reached the Somme, which he intended passing 
where Edward had passed, but found it strongly guarded : he 
at length seized a passage near St. Quintin, and got safely 
over. He now marched for Calais; but on ascending the 
heights near Blangi (Oct. 25) he saw the whole French array 
drawn up on the plain of Azincourt. Henry's army was now 
reduced by disease and the sword to about 15,000 men. His 
situation was similar to that of Edward at Crecy, and of the 
Black Prince at Poitiers, and he made the same judicious dis- 
positions. The French acted with the same impetuosity and 
imprudence: the final result was similar. Of the French 
10,000 were slain, among whom were the constable himself 
and some of the chief nobility ; 14,000 were made prisoners, 
among whom were the dukes of Orleans and Bourbon, and 
many other nobles of high rank. The English lost but forty 
men. Want of funds preventing Henry, like his predeces- 
sors, from taking full advantage of this victory, he returned 
to England, having made a truce with the enemy. 

During this truce the animosity between the Armagnac 
and Burgundian parties raged with the greatest violence. 
Henry collected an army of 25,000 men, and landed in Nor- 
mandy: several towns surrendered, and, being reinforced 
with 15,000 more, he formed the siege of Rouen. The queen 
and the duke of Burgundy now made a treaty with him simi- 
lar to that afterwards made at Troyes ; but before it was com- 
pleted the dauphin and duke of Burgundy entered into a 
secret treaty to share the supreme power, and expel the in- 
vader. But the murder of the duke taking place, his son in- 

* See p. 228. 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAI VL POWER. 355 

etantly formed a league with the king of England, and the 
treaty of Troyes was concluded. All the north of France 
was rapidly conquered, and the dauphin driven beyond the a. d. 
Loire. In this state of affairs, Henry V. died. 1422, 

The duke of Bedford prosecuted the war with vigor. The 
battle of Verneuil, in which the only army of the king of 1424. 
France was defeated with great loss, seemed to have given 
the finishing stroke to his fortunes. Bedford resolved to pene- 
trate into the south of France, and for that purpose formed the 
siege of Orleans. Every effort was made to defend this city, 1428 
on which the hopes of France now seemed to depend. The 
siege was tedious, but the English were gradually gaining 
ground, when that wonderful visionary, Joan of Arc, appeared 
to restore the sinking destiny of France. A secret horror 
thrilled the English soldiers, which their officers either shared 
or could not remove ; defeat attended them everywhere ; the 
provinces and towns of France returned joyfully to their al- 
legiance ; the duke of Burgundy was reconciled to his sove- 
reign, and the English were, in a few years, driven out of 
every part of France but Calais. Thus, happily for both 1450 
countries, ended all the magnificent projects of the conquest 
of France. 

Scotland. 

From a very early period Scotland had been governed by 
kings. These were frequently engaged in wars and alliances 
with the northern princes of the heptarchy. When Duncan 
king of Scotland was murdered by Macbeth, an army was 
sent by Edward the Confessor against the usurper, and Mal- 
colm, the rightful heir, was restored to the throne. This 
prince espoused the sister of Edgar Atheling, and many of 
the English fled to Scotland from the tyranny of the Con- 
queror. The Scots began now to make occasional inroads 
into England. In one of these, William king of Scotland 
was taken prisoner by Henry II., and, as a part of the condi- 
tions of his liberty, was forced to do homage for his whole 
kingdom, the Scottish kings having hitherto done so only for 
Cumberland, which they held. Richard I., however, re- 
nounced this right. 

On the death of Alexander III., near a century afterwards, 1286 
a dispute arose about the succession to the Scottish throne. 
That monarch having lefl no descendant but a granddaugh- 
ter, who did not long survive him, the right fell to the de- 
scendants of David earl of Huntingdon, third son of David 1. ; 
of these John Baliol was grandson of Margaret, the earl's 
eldest daughter ; Robert Bruce was son of Isabel, his second 



356 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

daucrhter. The rules of succession not being at that time 
well established, it was a doubtful question whicJi was the 
true heir. To avoid a recourse to arms, the parliament of 
Scotland determined to refer the matter to the arbitration of 
Edward I., a prince extolled for wisdom and prudence. Ed- 
ward seized this occasion of obtaining- the sovereignty of 
Scotland : he appeared on the frontier with a large army, and 
compelled all the Scottish nobles, including the two candi- 
dates, to swear fealty to him as liege lord ; he made them give 
him possession of the kingdom, and then declaring Baliol the 

X. D. true heir, put him in possession of it, on his renewing his 

292! oath of fealty. 

The Scottish nation, and even their king, were indignant 
at being thus trepanned and degraded ; a secret alliance was 
formed with France; a dispensation of the king's oath of 
fealty was procured from the pope ; and, on being summoned 
to appear in an English parliament at Newcastle, Baliol re- 
1296. fused to attend. Edward entered Scotland at the head of 
30,000 foot and 4000 horse, and quickly overran and subdued 
the entire kingdom. Baliol was forced to submit and implore 
forgiveness, English garrisons were placed in the fortresses, 
and earl Warrenne left governor. 

This earl being obliged to return to England on account of 
his health, the administration was left in the hands of Ormsby 
and Cressingham, who oppressed the people without mercy. 
A gentleman, named William Wallace, was so provoked as 
to kill an English officer. Knowing he had no mercy to ex- 
pect, he fled to the woods and collected a party, with whom 
he continually harassed the English; numbers joined him; 
several of the principal barons countenanced him ; and the 
whole country was on the eve of rising, when Warrenne col- 
lected an army of 40,000 men, and suddenly returned. Mak- 
ing an attack on the camp of Wallace, near Stirling, the 
English were totally routed, and Cressingham slain. The 
nation now rose, and bestowed on Wallace the title of regent. 
The English were expelled ; but Edward, who had been in 
Flanders, returned, collected an army of 80,000 men, and 
entered the country. The Scots ventured to give him battle 
at Falkirk (June 22), when they were routed with great 

29H slaughter. They still carried on the contest ; but Wallace 
was betrayed by his friend Sir John Monteith, and the intrepid 

305, patriot was executed in London as a rebel. 

Robert Bruce, who had been in the English service, now 
stepped forward to defend his own and his country's rights. 
The Scottish nation rose once more ; the English were driven 
out of the country, and Bruce was crowned at Scone. Ed- 




357 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 359 

ward now found he had all his work to do over again ; he 
sent an army, under Aymer de Valence earl of Pembroke, 
who defeated Bruce, and forced him to take shelter in the 
Western Isles. The king- was himself advancing, deter- 
mined to wreak his vengeance on the Scots, when he sick- a. d. 
ened and died at Carlisle, with his last breath charging his 1301 
son to prosecute the war. 

Edward II. was anxious to get back to England, and after 
a few feeble efforts he left Scotland. Bruce, who had returned, 
made himself master of the whole kingdom except a few for- 
tresses, and even made inroads into England. Edward was 
roused; he collected a large force, and entered Scotland. 
The English army was 80,000 strong; that of Bruce did not 
exceed 30,000. But he ventured to give them battle at Ban- 
nockburn, near Stirling (June 14,) where he totally defeated 1314. 
them. This victory, one of the most glorious ever obtained, 
secured the independence of Scotland, and reduced to nothing 
all the hopes founded on the iniquitous attempt of Edward I. 
One more fruitless effort was made by Edward, and a truce 1323. 
was then concluded for thirteen years. 

On the death of Robert Bruce, who left a son, a minor, 
Edward III. secretly encouraged the son of John Baliol to 
put forward his claim to the Scottish kingdom, raised a small 1332. 
array, with which he landed on the coast of Fife, and ad- 
vanced into the heart of the country, where he defeated the 
Scottish army of 30,000 men, under the earl of Mar. He 
then took Perth, and was crowned at Scone. But having 
dismissed the greater part of his English followers, he was soon 
after driven back into England. He here made large offers 
to Edward, particularly engaging to renew the homage which 
had been given up by Mortimer in Edward's minority, if he 
would assist him to regain his throne. Edward collected a 
large army ; the Scots encountered him at Halidon-hill, near 
Berwick (July 19), and were defeated with the loss of nearly 1333 
20,000 men and the chief of their nobility. But still Scot- 
land was unconquered. The English forces might overrun 
and destroy the country ; but as soon as they retired, the na- 
tives repossessed it, and again bade them defiance. 

David, the son of Robert Bruce, had taken refuge in 
France, but had returned, and driven Baliol out of Scotland. 1346 
At the solicitation of the king of France, with whom he had 
made an alliance, he invaded England. Queen Philippa, at 
the head of 12,000 men, met him at Neville's Cross, neai 
Durham (October 17,) and the Scottish king was defeated 
and taken prisoner. After a captivity of ten years, he was 
released for a ransom of 100,000 marks. 



360 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

A. D. Richard II. invaded Scotland, at the head of 60,000 men 

1385. and ravaged the country, as usual ; but in the mean time 
30,000 Scots retaliated on the west of England, and Richard 

1401. returned without having effected any thing. Henry IV. led 
an army into Scotland to no purpose. The Scots immediately 

H02. after invaded England, but were defeated by the Percies at 
Humbledown. The Scots afterwards aided the Percies in 
their rebellion. 

Robert III. of Scotland was a feeble prince : his brother, 
the duke of Albany, seized the government and aimed at the 
throne : to effect this purpose, he resolved to remove his 
nephews; and he threw David, the eWer, into prison, where 
he perished of hunger. Robert, to save James, his younger 

1407. son, sent him to France ; but the ship was taken by the Eng- 
lish, and Henry IV. refused to restore the young prince to 
liberty. Robert died of grief; and now, by possessing the 
person of the young king, Henry was able to keep the duke 
of Albany in dependence, and secure his kingdom from in- 
roads. He, however, gave the young monarch an excellent 
education. 

Ever since the time of Edward III., the French and Scot- 
tish nations had been in strict alliance against the common 
enemy. When Henry V. had had such a career of success 
in France, the Scottish nation and the regent saw plainly 
that they must submit if that country was conquered, and a 

1421. body of 7000 men was sent to the aid of the dauphin, who 
treated them with great favor. Throughout the war, Scottish 
volunteers crowded to the French standard ; and, in the reign 
of Henry VI., the duke of Bedford recommended it as the 
best policy, to marry the young king of Scots to the king's 
cousin, the daughter of the earl of Somerset, and give him 

1423. his liberty. This was done, and James, during his short 
reign, proved one of the greatest of the Scottish monarchs. 

1437. He was murdered by his kinsman the earl of Athol. During 
the wars of the Roses, Scotland was too much distracted by 
factions to be able to take any advantage of the state of Eng- 
land. In the reign of Henry VII., James IV. gave counte- 
nance and assistance to Perkin Warbeck ; but the war was 

1502. happily terminated by the marriage of the Scottish monarch 
with Margaret, eldest daughter of Henry. 

Scandinavia. 

Denmark and Norway we have seen early formed into 
monarchies. Sweden remained longer divided into small in- 
dependent districts. The Swedes and Goths at length agreed 
to foi-m one state, to be governed alternately by a Goth of the 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 361 

race of Svercher, and a Swede of that of Eric. The natural a. d- 
consequence was endless assassination. In the 14th century 1153. 
the race of Odis in Sweden was extinct, and a foreigner was 
placed on the throne. In the same century, the ancient lines 
in Denmark and Norway ended with Waldemar and Olaf. 
Margaret, daughter of the former, mother of the latter, was 
heiress to both. She defeated Albert of Mecklenburg king 
of Sweden, and forced him to abdicate, and then, by the Union 1398 
of Calmar, united the three Scandinavian kingdoms. Mar- 
garet, having no children, was succeeded by her nephew 
Eric, of the ducal house of Pomerania, but he was driven out 
of the three kingdoms. Christopher, a duke of Bavaria, was 1439 
invited to Denmark, and the other kingdoms submitted to his 
government. On his death Christian, son of the count of 1448 
Oldenburg, was chosen king of Denmark, and by his mother, 
who was sister to the count of Holstein, he obtained that 
country, which was now made a duchy. Norway followed 1459. 
the example of Denmark ; but Carl Cnutson and Steno Sture 
maintained the independence of Sweden against him and his 
two successors. 

Poland. 

The Poles are a portion of the Slavonians, the last great 
race which arrived in Europe. They were at first divided 
into several small states, for ever at war with each other. 
When they embraced the Christian religion, they united un- 
der the government of a duke. In the thirteenth century, 1295. 
Przemysl, of the house of the Piasti, assumed the royal dig- 
nity. This race ruled Poland five hundred years, and it ended 
with Casimir the Great, in 1370. He was succeeded by his 1370 
sister's son, Louis of Anjou, king of Hungary, also named 
the Great. This king left only daughters: Sigismund of 
Luxemburg, the husband of Mary, the eldest, was king of 1382. 
Hungary, and Louis had provided for the continued union of 
the two crowns ; but the Poles and Hedwig, his other daugh- 
ter, rejected that arrangement, and that princess gave her 1386. 
hand to Jagellon, great-prince of Lithuania, who with his 
people embraced the Christian religion. The kingdom flour- 
ished greatly under this king : its export of corn was con- 
. siderable. In the reign of his son, by the choice of the Hun- 1437. 
garians, the two countries were again united ; but this young 
monarch lost both life and crown in the battle of Varna, ^444 
against the Turkish sultan Moorad. 

His brother Casimir succeeded him in Poland, and was 
one of the greatest princes of his time. He made great ac- 
quisitions from the Teutonic order of knights. Casimir reign- 
31 



362 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

ed nearly half a century, and saw Vladislaus, one of his sons 
king of Hungary and Bohemia. 

Hungary. 

The house of Arpad ruled four hundred years in Hungary, 
A. D. and ended with Andrew III. On the death of this monarch, 
1301. the people were split into various parties; that of Charlea 
310. Robert, of the Neapolitan branch of the house of Anjou, pre- 
vailed, and he was called to the throne. His vigor and wis- 
dom, in the course of a long reign, raised the kingdom to great 
343. glory ; and the long reign also of his son Louis still further 
increased its power and dignity. But Louis unfortunately 
1382. died just as the Ottoman power was growing formidable on 
the frontiers, and the kingdom was again distracted by fac- 
1386. tion. Sigismund, a stranger, was chosen king, and reigned 
for more than half a century. He lost the battle of Nicopolis 
to the Turks ; but circumstances prevented their attempting 
to follow up their victory. Sigismund was succeeded in the 
empire and in Hungary by his son-in-law, Albert of Austria. 
1437. Albert's successor, Ladislaus, being a posthumous child, the 
Hungarians gave the crown, for his minority, to Vladislaus 
king of Poland. On his death John Hunniades was made re- 
1466. gent, and at the battle of Belgrade he gave an effectual check 
1458. to the Ottoman power. The young king lived but two years 
after Hunniades ; and the nation then chose Matthias the son 
of the valiant John Hunniades, to be their sovereign. Mat- 
thias was the greatest prince of his age, and in his wars with 
x\ustria and Bohemia victory always attended him. On hisi 
1490. death, the Hungarians elected Vladislaus, son of Casimir king 
of Poland, already king of Bohemia. 

The Ottomans. 

When the Mongols of Chingis Khan had burst through tlie 
barriers of Khowaresm over Persia and Lesser Asia, Suleiman, 
1234. one of the noblest of the Turkish tribe of Oghuz, migrated at 
the head of 50,000 souls from Khorassan to Armenia. Afler 
remaining seven years in that country, Suleiman prepared to 
return to his former abode ; but chancing to be drowned in 
crossing the Euphrates at Jaaber, his followers dispersed. A 
part remained in Syria, another part went to Lesser Asia. 

Of the four sons of Suleiman, two returned to Khorassan ; 
the two younger, Dindar and Ortoghrul, retired with four 
hundred families to the mountains east of Erzeroom, and 
thence roved westwards, to seek a retreat in the dominions 
of Ala-ed-deen, the great prince of the Seljookians of Icorium. 
On their way, they came to where two armies were fighting ; 




363 



HAP. Vri. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 365 

Ortoghrul chivalrously resolved to assist the weaker, and his 
aid turned the scale. It wq.s Ala-ed-deen vi^hom he made 
victorious over an army of Tatars ; and the grateful sultan 
bestovv^ed honors and pasture-land on his ally. This land, the 
cradle of the Ottoman pov^er, is the Sanjak of Sultan Oni, the 
ancient Phrygia Epictetos. Here they fed their herds on the 
mountains in summer, and in winter descended into the plain ; 
and they lived in amity with the neighboring subjects of the 
Greek emperors. 

Osman, the son of Ortoghrul, resolved on conquest. His 
dervishes excited the courage of his soldiers, and he estab- a. u 
lished a kingdom in Bithynia, of which Brusa, at the foot of 1291 
the Mysian Olympus, became the capital. It is from this 
monarch that the western Turks derive their appellation of 
Ottomans, or more properly Osmans. 

In the time of his son Orchan, a great part of Lesser Asia 1326 
was subdued by the Turkish arms. The isles of Greece felt 
their power : the court of Constantinople was split into fac- 
tions ; civil war raged in the empire ; each party sought the 
aid of the Turks. John Cantacuzenes, a man of talent and 
virtue, on ascending the throne, felt that its strength was 
gone, and retired to the solitude of mount Athos. His suc- 
cessor, John Palseologus, was sunk in pleasure. Under the 
reign of Orchan the Ottoman institutions, one of which was 
the formation of the corps of Janizaries {Yeni-cheri, new sol- 
diers) were established, chiefly under the direction of his 
brother and vizier, the able Ala-ed-deen. 

Moorad (Amurath), the son and successor of Orchan, took 1359 
Adrianople, the second city of the empire, and made it the 
European capital of his dominions. By marriage he acquired 
the greater part of Kermian, and by purchase he gained 
Hamid. Philippopolis was taken from the Greeks; but 
Moorad found a more obstinate resistance from the Servians 
and Bulgarians. He fell at Cossova, assassinated by a valiant 1389 
Servian youth. 

Bayezeed (Bajezet) Yilderim, i. e. Lightning, a brave but 
headstrong prince, succeeded his father, and his first act was 
to put to death his only brother. The forces of Western 
Europe, Germany, Hungary, and France, commanded by 
Siglsmund, king of Hungary, the counts of Ne vers, la Marche, 
and Eu, the admiral de Vienne, the marshal Boucicault, the 
lord of Coucy, and several others of the prime nobility of 
France and Germany, with 60,000 men, advanced to Nico- J 396 
polls. Bayezeed led against them a more numerous host. 
The Christians fought with their wonted valor, but yielded 
to the numbers and the discipline of the Moslems : their 

ai* 



366 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PART 11. 

leaders were slain or made captive. Siffismund escaped to 
the Danube with five companions, and thence to Constanti- 
nople. Bosnia was overrun by Bayezeed, and he was pre- 
paring to invest Constantinople a second time, when the 
progress of his conquests westwards was checked by the ap- 
proach on the east of the Tatars under Timoor. Bayezeed 

A. D. hastened to oppose them. On the plains of Angora he fought 

1402. with a courage worthy of his race, but was defeated and taken 

402. prisoner. Grief and vexation caused his death, and the con 
queror restored his body to the sepulchre of his fathers. 

The captivity and death of Bayezeed weakened and dis- 
tracted the Turkish power : the sons of the captive sultan 
contended with each other ; and it was only by the wisdom 

1413. of Mohammed I. and his vizier Bayezeed that the empire re- 
gained its vigor. His son, Moorad 11. , a valiant and merci- 

1422. fuj hero, subdued the greater part of what remained to the 
Greek emperors. John VII. in vain sought aid in Europe ; 
in vain he visited Italy, and agreed to an union of the churches. 
The union was rejected by the Greek clergy, and theological 
controversy reigned more violently than ever in the falling 
empire of the East. 

Moorad having made peace with Hungary, adhered to it 
faithfully. But while he was at Magnesia, in Asia, the 
papal legate released the Hungarians from their oath, and 
they seized this opportunity of assailing the Ottoman do- 
minions. King Vladislaus and John Hunniades marched to 
the Black Sea. Moorad appeared ; the battle was fought at 

1444. Varna. In the front of his array Moorad displayed the vio- 
lated treaty. Victory was long on the side of the Christians, 
when Moorad, it is said, pointing to the treaty, called aloud on 
God to avenge their perjury, and at that moment the young 
kinsT rushed amid the ranks of the Janizaries and fell, and 
victory declared for the sultan. This excellent prince, twice 
during his reign, resigned his crown for the enjoyment of a 
private life, but was each time recalled to the throne by the 
danger of the state. 

1451. Moorad's son, Mohammed II., joined to the valor of his 
father a greater spirit of enterprise. The doom of Constanti- 
nople was now fixed. It had stood in magnificence for 1123 
years, had seen its western rival more than once open her 
gates to the conqueror, while itself had but once submitted, 
and had quickly resumed its dignity ; but now its dynasty 
and its religion were to change, the rovers of the steppes 
were to lord it in the palace of the Csesars, and the crescent 
was tv replace the glittering cross on the summit of its great 
temple. Mohammed invested the city : during fifty days the 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 367 

massive walls were assailed by artillery of enormous size and 
power. The Turks at length burst in : Constantine, the last 
of the Csesars, fell at the breach, sword in hand, with a a. d. 
courage worthy of the greatest of those whom he represented. 1453. 
The city was plundered, the inhabitants sold into slavery. 

The Peloponnesus was speedily overrun, and the little 1461 
empire of Trebizond, which had lasted 258 years, submitted 
at the appearance of Mohammed. The PalsBologi in the 
Peloponnesus were forced to yield to the Ottoman arms ; but 
in Albania, George Castriot (called for his valor by the Turks 
Scanderberg, i. e. Prince Alexander) resisted the Turkish ^ 
power with success as long as he lived. The battle of Bel- 
grade checked effectually the progress of Mohammed on the 
side of Hungary. The Servians were completely subdued. 
The voivode of Wallachia, the merciless Drakul, made a 
more vigorous defence ; but he was defeated, and that country 
also reduced to submission. Caramania was forced to submit 
to the rule of Mohammed ; but the knights of Rhodes repelled 
him from their island. 

The Tatars* — Timoor. 

Timoor (i. e. Iron) was descended from Berla, the Emir- 1335, 
ul-umera of Jagatai, the son of Chingis Khan. The youth 
of Timoor was spent in freebooting and the t;hase : in his 
twenty-seventh year he rendered important military service 
to the emir Husein of the house of Jagatai, who then ruled 
over Khorassan and Transoxiana, against the khan of Tur- 
kestan. The hand of the emir*s sister was his reward ; but 
on her death within four years, Timoor cast off allegiance, 
and war broke out between him and the emir. On the death 
of the latter Timoor occupied the throne, and fixed his resi- 
dence at Samarkund. He turned his arms first against the 
eultan of the Jetans (Getce?) and the shah of Khowaresm, 
then subdued Khorassan, and ravaged Persia during three 
years: with the speed of light he now swept over Great 
Tatary, and shortly afterwards feasted his host on the banks 1391. 
of the Volga. A campaign of five years wasted Persia ; and 
Bagdad, Mesopotamia, Koordistan, Armenia, and Georgia 
were conquered by the Tatars. Timoor next poured his 1398. 
hordes over the fertile plains of India. The plunder of Delhi 
rewarded their elibrts, and he pursued the flying Indians tff 

* We consifjer the distinction between Turks and Tatars to have been 
elearly shown by M. Klaprnth: the former are of Caucasian, the latter of 
Mongol race. Yet the Tatars of Timoor appear rather of mixed race ; at 
least, Timoor himself is described of a fair and ruddy complexion, very dif- 
ferent from that of a Mongol Tarlar, the corruption of Tatar, owes ita 
origin to a pun of St. Louia on Tatar and the Latin Tartarus. 



36B HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART II. 

the sources of the sacred Ganges. The same year the Tata; 

conqueror wintered on the plains of Karabag-h, west of the 
Caspian ; in the spring he laid waste Georgia, took Sivas, 
one of the finest and most populous cities of Lesser Asia, 
and cruelly put the garrison to death; conquered all the 

A. D. towns to Aleppo, defeated there the Egyptian army, and took 

' 401. that city ; and, at length, made a general massacre of the in- 
habitants of Bagdad. 

Tim K)r wintered once more on the plains of Karabagh. 
The princes whom Bayezeed had robbed of their dominions 
had cast themselves on the protection of the Tatar, and Ti- 
moor prepared for war with the haughty Ottoman. Negotia- 
tion was tried in vuin ; Bayezeed was hardened in obstinacy, 
and in the neighborhood of Angora, on the very plain where 
Pompeius had defeated Mithridates, the Turkish army of 
120,000 men engaged the Tatar host of 700,000. Prom morn- 

U02. ing to night of a burning day (July 20) endured this last 
battle of either monarch, and it ended in the total rout of the 
Turkish host, and the captivity of its leader. The tale of the 
iron cag-e is a fabulous legend. The Tatars overran all Les- 
ser Asia; Timoor reached Iconium. Bayezeed died of apo- 

. 40-% plexy at Akshehr (March 8), and two years afterwards Ti- 
moor breathed his last on his march against China. 

Timoor left his empire to his grandson Peer Mohammed 
Jehangheer; but this prince was unfortunate in the contest 
for the crown with his brother Khulleel Sultan, and the em- 
pire eventually fell into the hands of Shah Rokh, the virtuous 
son of Timoor. But at length the fortune of the house of 
Timoor was forced to yield before that of the Usbegs; and 
after a glorious struggle against Shybuk Khan the Usbeg. 
the able and celebrated Baber retired to Hindoostan, and 
founded that great empire, the nominal sovereign of which, 
his lineal descendant, still sits, a monument of fallen great- 
ness, in Delhi, beneath the protection of a British company 
of merchants. It was while Baber was on the throne that 
the Portuguese first appeared on the coast of Malabar. 

The Turkman tribes of the Black and the White Wether, 
so named from their standards, had fixed themselves on the 
western frontier of Persia. On the death of Timoor they 
advanced into that country : the former tribe established its 
empire in Aderbijan and the adjacent provinces; the latter 
eyt^ended its power over nearly the whole of Persia. They 
encountered the arms both of the descendants of Timoor and 
the Ottoman sultans. 




369 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 371 

Spain. 

The peninsula contained now four Christian king-duns, 
Castile, Aragon, Navarre, and Portugal ; and one Mohamme- 
dan, Granada. 

Alfonso X., the Wise, king of Castile, was chiefly distin- a. d 
guished by his attachment to science, and by his code, the 1252 
Siete Partidas. His son Sancho rebelled against him, and 
disquieted the latter part of his life. The reigns of Sancho 
and his two successors were periods of anarcliy and turbu- 
lence. Peter the Cruel surpassed all his predecessors in 1350i 
tyranny and crime. A rebellion, headed by his illegitimate 
brother, Henry of Transtamara, supported by Aragon and 
Portugal, broke out, and drove him from his throne. Henry 
was aided by Bertrand du Guesclin and the companies of 
adventure who had been engaged in the wars between France 
and England. Peter fled to Guienne, and implored the aid 
of the Black Prince, promising to give him Biscay in case 
he should restore him to his throne. The British prince en- 
tered Spain, recalled to his standard the companies of adven- 1367. 
ture, defeated Henry at the battle of Navarrete, and took du 
Guesclin prisoner. But Peter's ingratitude causing him to 
retire in disgust, Henry again appeared, and he defeated and 1369 
slew with his own hand the savage tyrant. 

The reigns of Henry IT. and his two successors, John I. 
and Henry III. (1368 — 1406) were tranquil ; and these 
princes merited the affection of the people by their observance 
of the laws. John II. being but fourteen months old at his 1406 
accession, the government was wisely administered during 
his minority by his mother and his uncle Ferdinand. On his 
attaining his majority, the golden period terminated ; the re- 
mainder of his reign was a series of conspiracies and civil 1454 
wars. Henry IV., son of John, was solemnly and unjustly 
deposed by a party of his factious nobles, who set up his 1465 
brother Alfonso against him, and a civil war ensued. These 
nobles had accused Henry's queen of adultery, and maintain- 
ed that Joanna, their only child, was illegitimate. Accord- 
ingly, on the death of Alfonso, his sister Isabel was regarded 
as the heiress. She agreed to a treaty with Henry, by which 1469 
the succession was secured to her ; but Henry took the first 
opportunity of rescinding the agreement, and on his death 
the parties had to appeal to arms. Isabel, who was married 1474. 
to Ferdinand infant of Aragon, was supported by that power. 
Joanna was betrothed to Alfonso king of Portugal, and he* 
mother was a princess of that family ; she was, therefore, 
supported in her claim by the strength of that kingdom. The 



372 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART U. 

i D. 

1476 king" of Portug-al, however, wa^, defeated at Toro, and all 
Joanna's partisans gradually subrwitted to Isabel. 

Aragon, though not so extensive as Castile, equalled it in 
power. Its government was better, its sovereigns wiser, its 
trade far more extensive. The ^tilor of the Cid had given 
it Valencia; the Balearic isles were added to it; a long and 
sanguinary contest had, at the commencement of the four- 
teenth century, brought Sardinia under its dominion ; and in 
this century it acquired Naples and Sicily. 

1410. On the death of Martin king of Aragon, the succession was 
disputed by five competitors, the count of Urgal, grandson 
of James, next brother to Peter IV. ; the duke of Gandia, 
grandson of James 11. ; the duke of Calabria, son of Violante, 
youngest daughter of John I. ; Frederic count of Luna, natu- 
ral son of the younger Martin king of Sicily ; and Ferdinand, 
infant of Castile, son of the late king's sister. The cortes of 
Aragon, Catalonia, and Valencia named nine persons, three 
of each, to hear and decide the claims; and, after solemn de- 
liberation, the crown was adjudged to Ferdinand of Castile. 

1416. This prince was succeeded by his son Alfonso V., who wag 
made king of Naples, where he passed the greater part of his 
reign, governing Aragon by his brother and successor John 

1479. II. On the death of John, the sceptre of Aragon passed to 
his son Ferdinand, who was married to Isabel queen of Cas- 
tile, and thus the two monarchies were united into one great 
kingdom, never again to be divided. Ferdinand now felt him- 
self strong enough to attack Granada, and end the conflict 
which had lasted for eight centuries. The war commenced , 
civil dissension rent the Moorish kingdom ; a party aided the 
Christian invaders; yet the conquest of Granada cost ten 
years of bloody and incessant warfare. At length it surren- 

1492. dered (Jan. 2), and Spain, in full strength and vigor, was 
prepared for her conflicts with France. 
"^ The little kingdom of Navarre passed continually by fe- 
males to the French houses of Bigorre, Champagne, Evreux, 
Foix, and Albret. But the kings of Aragon had made them- 
selves masters of the greater part of it. 

Portugal. 

Alfonso X. of Castile, had obliged Alfonso, the Restaurador 
ot Portugal, to swear that, for his conquest of Algarve, he 

279. would attend him in his wars with fifty lances. Diniz, the 
able successor of the effeminate Sancho, prevailed on the 
king of Castile to abolish this mark of the dependence of Por- 
tugal. 

1357, Pedro, the grandson of Diniz, was an able, just, and vigor 



CHAP. VII. DECLINE OF THE PAPAL POWER. 373 

ous prince : he contended with spirit against the power of the 
church, which was excessive in Portugal, and held it in check. 
Ferdinand, his feeble son, left an only daughter, married to 
John king of Castile, and Portugal was in imminent danger a. d 
of losing her independence. 1383 

A conspiracy was formed against the queen-dowager, who 
was regent, and her partisans : John, a natural son of king 
Pedro, and grand master of the order of Avis, was at the 
liead of it. The conspirators rushed into the castle where 
the queen resided, and Ruy Pereira slew before her eyes her 
favorite count Ourem. The people rose ; the bishop of Lisbon 
was flung from the tower of his cathedral ; the queen fled to 
Castile ; the master of Avis was appointed regent. The king 
of Castile (John I.) entered Portugal with an army. Most 
of the nobles were on his side : the commons were for Don 
John, and liberty. At the battle of Aljubarrota, 7000 Portu- 138& 
guese defeated more than four times their number of Cas- 
tilians, and the master of Avis was proclaimed king of Por- 
tugal. His reign of forty-eight years was the most brilliant 
period Portugal had yet seen. The Portuguese chivalry 1415. 
crossed the strait, and conquered Ceuta from the Moors. Dis- 
covery was prosecuted along the coast of Africa, through the 
generous efforts of his son Don Henry, and Madeira and the 
Azores were added to his dominions. While his grandson 1459. 
Alfonso V. was carrying on war with success against the 
Moors of Fez, adventurous mariners had passed the line, set- 
tled oa the Gold Coast, and discovered Congo. The Cape of 
Good Hope was doubled by Diaz. 

Discovery of America. 

The progress of the Portuguese along the coast of Afiica, 
the discovery of new nations, and the knowledge of the in- 
correctness of the ideas of the ancients respecting geogra- 
phy, aided by the compass, and the courage and skill acquired 
by navigating the stormy seas of the north, had prepared men 
for bold and distant voyages. The great problem was, the 
passage by sea to India : this the Portuguese sought by the t 
circumnavigation of Africa. Christopher Columbus, a Genoese, 
a man of great naval skill and courage, by reflecting on the 
magnitude of the earth, now known to be globular, had con- 
jectured that, by sailing westwards, a ship might, after passing 
over a moderate space of sea, arrive at the coast of India. 
Pieces of carved wood, natural productions, and even the 
bodies of men had been thrown ashore in different places by 
the waves running from the west : various traditions were 
current of a land to the west having been formerly visited 
32 



374 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TI. 

A.11 these circumstances combined, convinced Columbus that, 
by sailing due- west, a ship must, within a moderate space of 
time, reach a country which, he was firmly persuaded, must 
be India. Under this impression, he made, as he thought him-, 
self bound to do, the first proposal of attempting the discovery 
to his native city Genoa. Meeting with no encouragement 
there, he applied to the king of Portugal, in whose capital he 
resided ; but Don John was too firmly bent on the course 
which the Portuguese had been so long pursuing to hearken 
to him. Columbus now sent his brother Bartholomew to 
Henry VII. of England : he went in person to Ferdinand and 
Isabel of Spain. Bartholomew was taken by pirates, and did 
not reach England for a long time, by which means that coun- 
try probably lost the honor of the future discovery. Christo- 
pher, after long soliciting at the court of Castile, at length 
obtained a small squadron from Isabel, elated with the recent 

^ jj conquest of Granada. 

1492 With three small vessels, carrying but 90 men, Columbus 
sailed from the port of Palos on the 3d Aug. 1492. He steered 
westwards, and proceeded a long way without meeting any 
signs of land : his crews began to grow terrified and muti- 
nous : Columbus soothed and pacified them. At length, one 
morning (Oct. 12), the coast and woods of St. Salvador, one 
of the Bahamas, rose before them, — ^and the New World was 
discovered. Sailing farther on, they arrived at Cuba and His- 
paniola, or St. Domingo ; and Columbus returning to Spain 
with intelligence of his discoveries, all Europe was filled with 
wonder and conjectures. The new country was named West- 
India, so convinced were men that it could be no other than 
a part of India, of which they had such indistinct concep- 

1493. tions. The next year Columbus discovered Puerto Rico, 

1498. Guadaloupe, and Jamaica. In his third voyage he discovered 
Trinidad, and a part of South America, which he knew not 
to be a continent. The ungrateful return made to the ser- 
vices of this great man, are too well known, and too conso- 
nant to the usual practices of courts, to need mention. He 

1506. died four years after his fourth and last voyage, poor and 
neglected, at Valladolid. 

While Columbus was prosecuting his discoveries to the 
west, the court of Portugal, having now ascertained Africa 
to be circumnavigable, had sent a fleet under the command 
of Vasco da Gama, round Africa, in quest of India. He sailed 
from the Tagus on the 9th of July, 1497, and on the 18th 
May, 1498, he reached the port of Calicut, on the western 
coast of India. 



CHAP. VII. DECIJNR OF THE PAPAL POWER. 377 

The middle ages here terminate. They began in ignorance, 
anarchy, and confusion : knowledge and order now regain 
their dominion. The discordant elements of theocracy, mon- 
archy, feudalism, and democracy, which had been in ceaseless 
conflict during this period, have so modified one another, as 
to make the fit state of transition to the blinded form which 
characterizes that which follows. 



.32* 



HISTORY OF THE ¥ORLD. 



PART III. 

MODERN HISTORY. 

CHAP. I. 

VIEW OF THE STATE OF EUROPE. 

Introduction. 



At the commencement of the middle ag-es the great em- 
pire of Rome was fallen to pieces from internal corruption 
and decay : the stream of hardy population which poured 
down from the north had burst all the opposing mounds ar i 
dikes, and overflowed the whole of the western empu s. 
Taste and learning, long- declining, were almost extinct ; f le 
Christian religion, now that of all parts of the empire, ^ as 
corrupted and debased ; and in that state it was embraced by 
the rude conquerors, and farther degraded by the admixl ire 
of their barbarous tenets and practices. The clergy acqu "ed 
from the superstitious fears of the people wealth, influe ice, 
and power; they ruled the laity with despotic sway, and 
bishops made kings tremble on their thrones : the pop , as 
head of the church, sought to draw all this power to hin self, 
and then to make it a source of emolument. The papal do- 
minion had finally attained a height unparalleled in the history 
of man ; but, like every other empire, its ascent only led to its 
descent. The extravagance of the papal pretensions b came 
apparent when learning began to be cultivated, and its gi-adual 
decline has marked the last period of those ages. 

One great empire arose in Europe after the fall o*" Rome ; 
but it fell to pieces when the vigorous mind which ha/ erected 
it was gone. Europe was divided into small states, nd war, 
internal and external, raged without ceasing ; a haughty in- 
dependent nobility insulted kings, and tyrannized over the 
people. The barbarians of the North and the East, and the en- 
thusiastic warriors of the Koran, overran, pillaged, and de- 
stroyed the fairest regions of the West. The intefcourse of 
nations, except in war, was small ; trade and commerce hardly 
existed ; the merchant was subject to be plundered openly bj 
378 



CHAP. I. VIEW OF THE STA'l fi OF EUROPE. 379 

the Stranger-lord, and to be pillaged by the arbitrary taxation 
of his own. 

Gradually the night was seen to pass away ; monarchs be 
gan to extend their power, and to perceive that it was their 
true interest to protect the people against the tyranny of the 
nobles, and to bring these last under obedience ; the church 
used her extensive power for the same purpose ; the people 
gradually acquired wealth; their towns were secured by 
charters and immunities granted by the crown or the feudal 
lord, and where the crown was feeble, voluntary associations 
secured them from the rapacity of the nobles. The latter ac- 
quired a relish for luxury : to obtain money, they alienated or 
let their lands, and soon felt that they had transformed their 
obedient retainers into sturdy independent yeomen and 
citizens. 

The lamp of learning was relumed ; the study of the scho- 
lastic theology and philosophy, and of the Roman law, sharp- 
ened men's intellects ; travels into the East enlarged their 
knowledge of the earth ; the use of the mariner's compass 
emboldened their navigation ; gunpowder changed the face 
of war ; paper, and at length the art of printing, gave a more 
rapid diffusion to knowledge ; the taking of Constantinople 
scattered the learning of the Greeks over the West ; schools 
and universities were numerous ; men were become eager 
for knowledge ; classical learning was, in Italy, cultivated 
with ardor, and a strong feeling of admiration for the institu- 
tions and philosophy of antiquity excited ; the discourses and 
writings of Wickliffe, Huss, and their disciples awakened be- 
yond the Alps attention to the important topics of religion ; 
the discovery of India and the New World filled men's minds 
with vague aspirations after adventure, conquest, wealth, and 
knowledge. A universal fermentation was going on. 

Such was the state of the European mind, at the com- 
mencement of modern history. The political condition of 
Europe was chiefly that of extensive monarchies, internally 
tranquil, and ready to turn their entire forces against each 
other. We will commence this part by a view of their re- 
spective conditions. 

England. 

The wars of the Roses had greatly thinned the English 
nobility and gentry : they were weary of civil conflict, and 
quietly submitted to the arbitrary rule of Henry VII. All the 
barriers of liberty erected under the Plantagenets were 
thrown down, and England became in this, and still more in 
ihe following reign, nearly an absolute monarchy. The 



380 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

daug-hters of Henry VII. were married, one to Louis XII. 

king of France, the other to the king of Scotland. Wales 
^, D, was incorporated with England ; over Ireland she held a du- 
1509. bious dominion. Henry was succeeded by his son of the same 

name. 

France. 

All the great fiefs had been reunited to the crown. Flushed 
with power, her sovereign Charles VIII. now, at the invitation 
of Sforza duke of Milan, put forth his claims to the kingdom 

1495. of Naples. At the head of 20,000 French, and 6000 Swiss, 
he speedily achieved the conquest of it. But the discontent 
of the Neapolitans, and the league of the pope, the emperor 
Maximilian, Ferdinand of Aragon and Castile, the Venetians, 
and the duke of Milan, forced Charles to leave that kingdom. 
On the banks of the Tanaro, in the Parmesan, the allied forces 
waited for the enfeebled French army as it emerged from the 
passes of the Apennines. The French, with a loss of 200 
men, routed three times their number, leaving 3000 of them 
on the plain. 

1498. Louis XII., named the Father of his People, asserted his 
claim to Milan and to Naples : he conquered them both, but 
was unable to retain them. 

Germany. 

1493. Maximilian succeeded his father Frederic in the empire. 
By marriage with the heiress of Burgundy he got all the pos- 
sessions of that house ; and on the death of his cousin Sigis- 
mund archduke of Austria, the Austrian dominions fell to 
him. The diet of Worms, held during the reign of this 
emperor, established a perpetual public peace in Germany, 
by adopting vigorous measures for the suppression of private 
warfare, and by providing a paramount court of justice — the 
Imperial Chamber. 

Russia, Poland, Scandinavia. 

After casting off the yoke of the Tatars, the Russian princes 
exerted themselves to establish trade and communication 
1505. with Western Europe : Vasilius kept up a good understand- 
ing with the emperor Maximilian, and granted great privi- 
leges to the Hanse towns. 

The Poles and Russians now engaged in war with each 
615. other, and the former lost Smolensko and Pleskov. 

In Scandinavia the contest for the independence of Sweden 
was prosecuted. The Russian tsar entered into a treaty of 
partition against Sweden, with Christian II. of Denmark. 




381 



CHAJ*. I. VIEW OF THE STATE OF EUROPE 383 

Switzerland and Savoy. 

Louis XL, when dauphin, had led a body of troo))s into a d. 
Switzerland, where the reception he met with, combined 1444. 
with the great victories of the Swiss over the duke of Bur- 
gundy, inspired him with such a respect for them, that he all 
his life courted their alliance. His policy was followed by 
his successors. The Swiss now began to hire out their 
troops, and they played a conspicuous part in the wars of Italy. 
An attempt was made by the emperor Maximilian to revive 
the supremacy of the empire over the Swiss, and bring them 
under the jurisdiction of the imperial chamber; but in the 
war that ensued their success was decisive, and an honorable 1499 
peace was made with them. 

Savoy had been latterly enfeebled by minorities. Its dukes 
were rather good than great princes. 

Italy. 

Philip, the last of the vile race of the Visconti, dukes of 1447 
Milan, left only an illegitimate daughter, married to Fran- 
cesco Sforza, the great condottiere who commanded the 
troops of the duchy. Sforza made himself duke, and gov- 1450 
erned with prudence and justice. His son Galeazzo was mur- 
dered ; but the widow. Bona of Savoy, maintained the duchy 1478 
for her son John Galeazzo. Lodovico Moro, brother of the 
murdered prince, destroyed his nephew by a slow poison. 1494. 
Fearing the king of Naples, whose daughter had been mar- 
ried to John Galeazzo, he excited Charles VIII. of France to 
assert his claims, derived from the house of Anjou, to Naples, 
promising him the aid of himself and other Italian powers. 
But Sforza afterwards joined the league formed against 
Charles ; and Louis XII. advanced his claims to the Milanese, 
derived from his grandmother Valentina Visconti. He con- 1500 
quered and held the duchy twelve years. 

The house of Este governed as vassals of the empire, or . 
the church, with ducal title, Ferrara, Modena, and Reggio; 
the Gonzaga family ruled at Mantua, the Pico at Mirandola, 
the Malaspina at Massa, the Grimaldi at Monaco. 

At Rome, after some excellent, some indifferent popes, the 
papal chair was filled by Alexander VI., of the Spanish house 149$ 
of Borgia, a monster who might vie in vice with the Neros 
and Caligulas of ancient Rome. His only plan of politics 
was to secure a principality in Italy for his enterprising son, 
CaBsar Borgia ; and neither father nor son was deficient 'n 
the courage and iniquity requisite for the attainment of tha* 
28 



384 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

object. Alexander was succeeded by the warlike Julms II. 
who added Bologna to the papal states. 

Venice had acquired the kingdom of Cyprus : she was now 
at the zenith of her power; she carried on a lucrative trade 
with the East, and was highly favored by the Mameluke sul- 
tans ; she was rich, and her army was the best in Italy. The 
discovery of the route to India by the Portuguese, and the 
conquest of Egypt by the Ottomans, gave her prosperity ita 
death-blow. 

At Florence the wealthy and magnificent family of the 
Medici had been gradually increasing in influence. Cosimo 
de' Medici, called the Father of his Country, exerted a com- 
manding influence in the state. After the death of his son 
Piero, a conspiracy was formed against his grandsons, and Ju- 
lian was murdered, but Lorenzo escaped. 'J'he latter was 
afterwards restored to his country, and completed the destruc- 
tion of its liberties. The independence of Florence, as it 
was to fall, could not fall by a nobler hand. Lorenzo's patron- 
A. D. age of literature and the arts is known to every one. His 
1492. death was regarded as an event fatal to all Italy. 

Louis XII. and Ferdinand of Spain having entered into a 
treaty for the conquest and partition of Naples, Frederic, the 
king of that country, could not resist such formidable oppo- 
nents. Naples was speedily conquered. The French army 
was enfeebled by the climate and disease, and disliked by the 
people. The wily Ferdinand and his general, Gonsalvo de 
Cordova, the Great Captain, took advantage of these circum- 
stances to drive the French a second time out of that kingdom. 

The League of Camhray. 

1509. Louis XTL, Maximilian, the king of Spain, and pope Julius 
II. entered at Cambray into a league against the Venetians. 
The republic opposed to them firmness in her senate, skill 
and courage in her generals, fidelity in her subjects. Jealousy 
soon broke out among the confederates, and the emperor, the 
pope, the king of Spain united with the Swiss and the Vene- 
tians to drive the French out of Italy. Louis was forced to 
give way : the victory of the Swiss at Novara was decisive. 

'612. Maximilian, the son of Lodovico Sforza, was restored to the 
dukedom of Milan. 

Spain and Portugal. 

477, Before the taking of Granada the execrable tribunal of the 
inquisition had been planned by the minister Mendoza, and by 
Salez bishop of Cadiz, and in spite of the opposition of the 
people, the clergy, and even at first of the pope, introduced 



CHAP. I. VIEW OF THE STATE OF EUROPE. 385 

into Castile. It was directed against the Jews ; Torquemada, 
a Dominican, was the first great inquisitor ; and the tribunal, j^. ;; 
in its first year, committed 2000 persons to the flames. Great 148 
opposition was made to it in Aragon ; but it was introduced 
there by force of arms. Leon, Valencia, and Sicily resisted 
also, but with as little success. On the reduction of Granada, 
liberty of conscience had been secured to the Moors ; but a 
council, presided over by the archbishops of Granada and To- 
ledo, decided that Ferdinand and Isabel were not bound to 
keep faith with the infidels, and the Moors were brought 
within this sanguinary jurisdiction. The erection of this ini- 
quitous tribunal, and its closfe alliance with the throne, have 
been the main cause of the future decline of Spain, and of 
her being at the present moment the most degraded of na- 
tions. 

Portugal was still in her golden age under Don Manuel, 
commencing her guilty but brilliant career in Asia* 

Turkey, 

Mohammed II. was succeeded by his son Bayezeed, a prmce 
of mild, peaceable temper. After a reign of thirty years he 
was forced to resign his throne to his son Selim, one of the 1512. 
greatest and most cruel of the Ottoman monarchs. Selim 
commenced his reign by the murder of his brothers and 
nephews, and the massacre of 40,000 Sheeahs, or dissenters 
from the orthodox faith, and he engaged in war with and de- 
feated, at Chaldiran near Tebreez, shah Ismail, the founder 
of the SufFavee dynasty in Persia. By force and negotiation 
he made himself master of Koordistan and Mesopotamia. As 
Kansoo Ghawree, the Mameluke sultan of Egypt, was the 
ally of Ismail, war against him was resolved on by Selim. 
The Mameluke advanced at the head of his army to the fron- 
tiers of Syria, and on the mead of Dabeek, not far from 
Aleppo, the hostile sultans engaged. The quantity of the 1516. 
Turkish artillery, and the inactivity of the Jelban (the second 
order of Egyptian troops), gave an easy victory to Selim. 
Ghawree, an old man of eighty years, died at a pool in the 
flight, and all Syria submitted. Peace was offered to and re- 
jected by the new sultan, Toomawn Beg. Selim crossed the 
desert, and entered Egypt. The treachery of Ghazalee, one 
of Toomawn's generals, and the superiority of his artillery, 
gave Selim another victory at Ridania, near Cairo, which 
city was taken, after a gallant resistance, and 50,000 of its 
inhabitants barbarously massacred. After bravely but vainly 
fighting for his empire, the " valiant, chivalrous, humane, uj)- 
right " Toomawn Beg was taken, and, at the suggestions of 
33 



386 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IH, 

A. D. the traitors Ghazalee and Khair Beg, hanged at one of the 

1517. gates of Cairo ; and Egypt was reduced to a province. The 

last khalif of the house of Abbas was sent to Constantinople, 

but he died on the way. The Ottoman sultans have ever 

1520. since taken that sacred title. Selim died, after a reign of 

eight years. 

Persia. 

During this period Persia witnessed a not unfrequent oc- 
currence in the Mohammedan world — the erection of empire 
on the basis of religion. A family of sheikhs had long dwelt 
at Erdebil in that country. They passed their lives in the 
practice of that mystic contemplation called Sooffeeism, and 
derived their name of Suffavee from SufFee-ed-deen, one of 
the most distinguished of their ancestors, who died in the be- 
ginning of the 14th century. At the close of the 15th cen- 
tury, Jooneid, one of them, began to meddle in politics, and 
he was driven from Erdebil by Jehan Shah, the descendant 
of Chingis, and then prince of the Black Wether. He took 
refuge with Uzun Hassan, the powerful chief of the White 
Wether, who gave him his sister in marriage. Under pre- 
text of leading his followers against the infidel Georgians, he 
ravaged the country of the prince of Shirwan, against whom 
he fell in battle. His son Haider trod in his steps. He or- 
ganized his followers, and made them wear for distinction red 
caps, whence they, and afterwards all the Persians, were 
called by the Turks, in derision, Kuzzil Bashes (^Red-heads). 
He also attacked the prince of Shirwan and besieged him in 
his castle of Gulistan ; but he fell in a conflict with the troops 
of Yacoob, prince of the Black Wether, who came to the re- 
1488. lief of the besieged. His two sons were taken and confined ; 
the Yacoob's successor gave them liberty. The eldest, re- 
belling, was slain ; the younger, Ismael, then but seven years 
old, was saved by the prince of Ghilan. 

In the 15th year of his age, Ismail, at the head of 7000 of 
his adherents, made war on the prince of Shirwan, defeated 
him, and fixed his throne at Tebreez, the capital of Aderbi- 
1501. Jan. He next ravaged a part of the dominions of the peace- 
ful Bayezced II. The princes of the Black and the White 
Wether, and the shah of Mazenderan, were all vanquished 
by him. All the land from the Caspian to the Persian gulf 
obeyed him : he extended his conquests beyond the Oxus, and 
defeated the great khan of the Usbegs. His power was now 
at its zenith : he engaged in war with Selim I., under pretext 
of supporting the claims of Selim's nephews, and avenging 
the massacre of 40,000 Sheahs, slaughtered by order of the 



A. D 



7HAP. II, TIMES OF CHARLES V. 389 

Sultan. T/ie Ottomans entered the Persian dominions : on 
the plains ofChaldiran, on the road to Tebreez, the armies of 
Ismail and Selim, each of 120,000 in number, encountered : 1514. 
victory declared in favor of the Turkish artillery, and Te- 
breez was taken and plundered. Want of supplies forced 
Selim to retreat, and Ismael subdued Georgia. He died 
shortly afterwards, and was succeeded by his son, Tamasp. 1523 



CHAP. n. 

TIMES OF CHARLES V. 

Accession of Charles V. 

In the commencement of the sixteenth century the largest 
empire that Europe has seen since the time of Charlemagne, 
was ruled over by Charles, son of Philip, archduke of Aus- 
tria, and Joanna, heiress of Ferdinand and Isabel of Spain. 
From his grandmother he inherited the rich dominions of the 
house of Burgundy in the Low Countries ; the death of Fer- 
dinand gave him Spain, Naples, Sicily, and the New World. 
On the death of his grandfather, Maximilian, he got the pos- 1519. 
sessions of the house of Austria, and he and Francis, king of 
France, becoming candidates for the imperial dignity, the 
majority of the electors declared for Charles. 

The Turks, under the warlike Selim L, were now the 
enemy dreaded by Europe ; and the chief question with the 
electors had been, which of the rival mpnarchs would be best 
calculated to defend the empire against them : the circum- 
stance of Charles's Austrian dominions had turned the beam 
in his favor. The only other power of consequence in Europe 
was England, now governed by the vain, capricious, haught)'- 
Henry VIII., but whose size and situation prevented her 
having any idea of extensive conquest. Charles, in the views 
of universal empire which he early conceived, had, therefore, 
apparently only Francis to impede him ; but his own charac- 
ter, and the strength and resources of his kingdom, gave the 
latter such advantages, that only ambition could have blinded 
the emperor to the plain fact, that France was then, as ever, 
unconquerable. But there was just at this period a moral 
power arising, more effectual to check the ambition of the 
emperor than even the chivalry of France. The great reform- 
ation of religion had now commenced. 
33* 



390 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART lU 

The Reformation. 

The eyes of men had been gradually opened to the frauds 
and corruptions of the Romish church, and the rapacity of the 
court of Rome had alienated the minds of princes and people. 
The awakened love of know! edge led men to aspire after 
freedom of thought, and to feel heavy the yoke which the 
church of Rome, though never less intolerant or arbitrary 
imposed in all matters relating to religious doctrine. Menta 
emancipation was panted after. A proper occasion and a bold 
leader were all that were wanting to excite the flames of 
spiritual rebellion. The occasion was soon presented, and 
the leader appeared. 

Leo X., of the family of the Medici, now filled the papal 

I chair. Like his family, he was devoted to literature and 
pleasure, and tasteful and magnificent in his ideas and ac- 
tions. It is not improbable that, as he is charged, he re- 
garded the religion of which he was the head as merely a 
gainful fable ; and as he was now engaged in rearing that 
splendid temple, the glory of modern Rome, he found it need- 
ful to put in practice every mode of raising money of which 
the papal chancery could furnish a precedent. The sale of 
indulgences appearing most likely to bring in a large supply, 

A. D. they were issued in great quantities, and the disposal of them 

1518 committed to the most active agents. The Dominicans sold 
in Germany. The scandalous language and conduct of some 
of these men aroused the indignation of Dr. Martin Luther, 
an Augustinian, and professor of theology in the university 
of Wittenburg, in Saxony. He wrote and preached against 
indulgences; he was listened to with admiration : opposition 
excited him ; he had, though not profoundly learned, a strong 
sense of truth, and a vigorous imagination ; his eloquence was 
popular, his command of his native tongue great; his soul was 
full of love to his country and mankind, and his courage in 
maintaining what he held to be true, invincible. He read, 
he meditated, he entered into the spirit of the Scripture, and 
he felt how contrary to it were the practices and the claims 
of the church of Rome. He fearlessly expressed what he 
honestly thought ; he was supported by his university and his 
prince, the elector of Saxony ; he was summoned to Rome ; 
but, at the request of the elector, cardinal Cajetan w^as sent 
to Germany, and Luther appeared and defended his opinions 
before the diet at Augsburg. When Charles obtained the 
empire, he was again summoned, and appeared before the diet 

15ai. at Worms. He was dismissed ; and, under the protection of 



CHAP. II. TIMES OF CHARLES V. ^ 391 

the elector of Saxony, he still continued to propagate his 
opinions through the north of Germany. 

In Switzerland, Ulric Zuinglius, a priest at Zurich, had, a d. 
even earlier than Luther, opposed the sale of indulgences by ^^1^ 
the Franciscans in that country. Not confining themselves 
to religious abuses, Zuinglius and his friends sought to unite 
religion with civil polity, and to preserve and exalt the tone 
of republican virtue and freedom. The opinions of the re- 
formers rapidly spread into France, the Low Countries, and 
England, already prepared for them by WicklifFe and his dis- 
ciples. 

Wars of Charles V. and Francis I. 

Francis, count of Angouleme, on succeeding his father-in- 1515 
law, the late king Louis XIL, was eager to signalize himself 
in tlie eyes of the world. He turned his views towards Italy, 
and resolved to recover Milan. The Swiss guarded the passes 
of the Alps against him: on hearing of his having entered 
boldly into Piedmont, they descended, and encountered the 
arms of France in the plain ; and modern times have wit- 
nessed fevv such obstinate conflicts as that which ensued on 
the field of Marignano, near Milan. The battle lasted two 
days, and the Swiss did not retire till one-half of their num- 
ber was slain. All the Milanese now surrendered ; Sforza 
resigned his claim for a pension, and Francis returned home, i5ia 
leaving Charles duke of Bourbon governor. The emperor 
Maximilian invaded Italy, but was repulsed, and he then made 
peace with France and Venice. 

The competition for the empire caused ill-will between 
Charles and Francis: each sought to gain Henry VIII. and 
his minister Wolsey. The art of the emperor prevailed over 
the frankness and generosity of the French king. 

The Spaniards were in rebellion ; Francis seized the op- 
portunity of recovering for John d'Albret, Navarre, which 
Ferdinand had unjustly seized. A French army entered and 
conquered it ; but, venturing to advance into Spain, it was 
defeated, and Navarre recovered. Francis invaded the Low 
Countries without advantage. A league was now formed, 
between the pope, Henry VIII. , and Charles, against the 
king of France. The Milanese, disgusted with the insolence 
and exactions of the French, resolved to expel them, and put 
themselves u"der Francis Sforza, brother to their late duke. 
The pope hired Swiss, and formed an army under Prosper 
Colonna to assist them. The French were defeated ; Lau 
ti:ec, their commander, fled to Venice, and they lost every 
thing but Cremona, the castle of Milan, and a few other 



392 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

A. D. places. Joy at this success is said to iiave terminated the life 
1522 of Leo X. 

Francis sent money and 10,000 Swiss to Lautrec, who in- 
vaded the Milanese, but was defeated at Bicocca. Genoa, 
which was under the protection of France, was taken by Co- 
lonna, and the French now retained only Cremona. The 
523. new pope, Adrian VI., the Venetians, the Florentines, and 
the other Italian powers, joined in the league against Francis, 
v/ho was now without an ally ; and the emperor and the kin.<? 
of England were preparing to invade France on the south, 
jorth, and east. To add to the French king's difficulties, a 
conspiracy of the constable of Bourbon, who had been most 
iniquitously deprived of his estates by the malice of the king's 
mother, was discovered, and the delay occasioned by it pre- 
vented his heading the army he had assembled. He, how- 
ever, sent 30,000 men, under admiral Bonnivet, into Italy. 
Colonna, who commanded in Milan, dying at this time, was 
succeeded by Lannoy, viceroy of Naples, who was chiefly 
directed by the duke of Bourbon (who had escaped and en- 
tered the emperor's service), and the marquis of Pescara. 
i524. Bonnivet was defeated at the Sesia. In this battle fell the 

celebrated chevalier Bayard. 
1525. Having been successful against the armies which invaded 
France, the passion for recovering the Milanese seized the 
French monarch. He marched at the head of a large army 
into Italy ; every place submitted : he sat down before Pavia, 
a town well garrisoned, and commanded by Leyva, one of the 
ablest Spanish officers. It was winter: every exertion was 
- made by the imperial generals to collect an army ; fatigue 
and the rigor of the season reduced that of the French, 
weakened by a large part of it having been sent against Na- 
ples. The imperial army approached ; prudence counselled 
retreat ; romantic honor determined the king to stay. The 
imperialists attacked the French in their intrenchments ; the 
garrison made a sally ; the Swiss deserted their post ; the 
rout became general ; and Francis, after beholding the flower 
of his nobility perish by his side, was forced to surrender 
himself a prisoner. (Feb. 2). 

In a few weeks not a Frenchman was to be seen in Italy. 
Francis was rigorously confined : hard terms were proposed 
to him, but indignantly rejected. When taken, he had writ- 
ten to his mother the regent, " All is lost but our honor ;" 
and she exerted herself with vigor to put the kingdom into a 
posture of defence. Henry VIIL, now alive to the danger of 
Charles acquiring a preponderating power, listened to her 
proposals of an alliance, to which he was stimulated bv Wol- 




Death of Bayard. 



393 



CHAP. U. TIMES OF CHARLES V. 395 

sey, whom Charles had hitherto cajoled by a promise of the 
papacy, but w ho had now learned how little reliance was to 
be placed on the word of that monarch. 

Francis, at his own desire, had been removed to Madrid. 
It was long before he could get a sight of the emperor ; but 
when he threatened to resign in favor of the dauphin, and 
had fallen into ill health, Charles, who found that if he died 
he should lose all the advantages he proposed to derive from ■ 
his captivity, and who also dreaded a confederacy against 
him, lowered his demands ; and a treaty was signed at Madrid, x. c 
by which Francis agreed to surrender Burgundy, and to give 152fi 
his tw^o sons as hostages till it was performed. The exchange 
was made on the frontiers, and Francis set at liberty. The 
states of Burgundy being assembled, protested against this 
surrender of their province ; the pope, Clement VIL, absolved 
the king from the oath taken at Madrid ; and he and the 
kings of France and England, the Swiss, Venetians, Floren- 
tines, and Milanese, entered into an alliance, called the Holy 
League, to oblige the emperor to give up the sons of Francis 
for a reasonable ransom, and to reinstate Sforza in the duchy 
of Milan. 

The confederates took the field in Italy ; but, Francis ne- 
glecting to send sufficient reinforcements, Bourbon overran 
the Milanese ; and his troops beginning to mutiny for want 
of pay, he led them to Rome. In the assault on that city 
(May 6), Bourbon himself was slain ; but Rome was taken, 
and experienced from the troops of the pious Charles such 
calamities as had never been inflicted by any of her barbarian 1627 
conquerors in former times. The pope himself was besieged 
in the castle of St. Angelo, and forced to surrender. He was 
put into close confinement till he should pay an enormous, 
ransom. The hypocritical Charles put his court into mourn- 
ing, and ordered prayers to be offered up for his release, which 
he might have accomplished by a single line. Henry and 
Francis were preparing to invade the Low Countries. On 
hearing of the pope's captivity, they changed the scene of 
war : Henry supplied money, and Francis sent an army into 
Iialy under Lautrec. The pope was set at liberty; but Lau- 
trec dying, and Doria, the Genoese admiral, persuading his 
countrymen to revolt, the affairs of the allies declined, and 
the French army was ruined before Naples. 

Suleiman, the great Turkish sultan, had now overrun Hun- 
gary, and threatened the Austrian dominions ; the reforma- 
tion was making great progress in Germany ; Charles was, 
flierefore, as well inclined to peace as his adversaries. Mar- 1529 
garet of Austria, aunt of the emperor, and Louisa, mother 



396 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

of Francis, met nt, Cambray, and settled the terms of peace 
between them. Francis agreed to pay 2,000,000 crowns as 
a ransom for his sons, to give up all claims on Italy, and to 
resign the sovereignity of Flanders and Artois : Charles aban- 
doned all claim to Burgundy. 

The Italian states were not satisfied at being abandoned to 
the emperor ; but the dread of the Turks made him act with 
some generosity. He pardoned Sforza, and restored to him 
the duchy of Milan ; but the Florentines were reduced under 
the dominion of the house of Medici. 

Affairs of Germany. 

While Charles was engaged in the Italian wars, the opm- 
ions of the reformers had spread rapidly in Germany. While 
at enmity with the pope, the emperor was not very anxious 
to discourage them; but now, apprehending danger from 
them to the imperial authority, he resolved to take measures 
A. D. for their suppression. A diet was, therefore, convoked at 

1529. Spire, v hich confirmed the edict of that of Worms against 
Luther, and forbade any farther innovation in religion. Against 
this decree, the elector of Saxony, the landgraf of Hesse, 
the duke, of Liineburg, the prince of Anhalt, and the deputies 
of fourteen cities, protested ; and hence they, and the reform- 
ed in general, were called Protestants, 

1530. Charles returned to Germany, and assisted at a diet at 
Augsburg ; at which the confession of faith of the Protestants 
was read and defended by Melancthon and others. A decree 
was issued against them, and coercive measures resolved on. 
The Protestant princes met at Smalcalde, and entered into a 
league for mutual defence, and a secret alliance with the 
kings of France and England. The Turks were now men- 
acing Hungary, and Charles saw that this was no time for 
violent measures. A treaty was," therefore, concluded, in 
which he granted the Protestants liberty of conscience till 
the meeting of a general council, and they engaged to assist 
him against the Turks, 

1532. Suleiman entered Hungary at the head of 200,000 men. 
Charles took the command of 80,000 foot and 20,000 horse, 
besides a vast body of irregulars, near Vienna. The sultan 
retired ; and Charles returned to Spain, and engaged in a 
successful expedition against Tunis. While he was absent, 
the sect of the Anabaptists seized on the city of Miinster, and 

»535 defended it for some time courageously against the troopt of 
the bishop. 



CHAP. a. TIMES OF CHARLES V. 397 

Renetced War with France. 

While Charles was in Africa, Francis revived his claim on 
Italy. The king of England, engaged about his divorce from 
Catherine of Aragon, declined having to do with the affairs 
of the continent ; and the league of Smalcalde, indignant at 
the cruelties inflicted on some Protestants in Paris, refused 
to unite with Francis. The latter resolved, even without 
allies, to venture on war, under pretence of chastising the 
duke of Milan for the murder of his ambassador. He ap- 
proached Italy; but instead of entering the Milanese, he 
seized a great part of the dominions of the duke of Savoy, 
who appealed in vain to Charles, whose exchequer was now 
completely empty. Meantime Sforza died without issue, and 
the rights, which had only been surrendered to him and his 
heirs, returned to Francis. Instead, however, of entering at 
once on the duchy, he wasted his time in negotiation, while 
Charles took possession of it as a vacant fief of the empire, 
though still pretending to own the equity of the claims of 
the French monarch. 

The emperor having now procured sufficient supplies of a. d. 
money, resolved on attempting the conquest of France. Hav- ^^^^ 
ing driven the French out of Savoy, he invaded the southern 
provinces at the head of 50,000 men. Two other armies were 
ordered to enter Picardy and Champagne. The system adopted 
by Francis was defensive. From the Alps and Dauphine to 
Marseilles and the sea, the country was laid waste ; strong 
garrisons placed in Aries and Marseilles ; one French army 
strongly encamped near Avignon, another at Valence. After 
fruitlessly investing Aries and Marseilles, and spending two 
months in Provence, Charles retreated with the loss of one- 
half of his troops by disease and famine. An attempt by 
Francis on the Low Countries, was followed by a truce at 
Nice, under the mediation of the pope, Paul III. °^ 

The emperor suppressed an insurrection which had broken 
out in the city of Ghent ; but he was forced to make conces- 
sions to the Protestants in Germany, to gain their assistance 
against Suleiman, who had seized a part of Hungary. But 
the favorite object of Charles was the conquest of Algiers ; 
and in the end of autumn he, contrary to the advice of Doria 
his admiral, landed in Africa with a large army ; but tem- 
pests scattered his fleet and destroyed his soldiers, and he was 
"breed to re-embark, with the loss of the greater part of his 1541 
men. 

The war between the rival monarchs broke out anew. The 1M2. 
emperor was supported by the king of England and the Pro- 

31: 



398 HISTORY OP THE WOR :iD. PART III. 

testant princes, to whom he had made farther concessions. 
Francis was allied with the kings of Denmark and Sweden, 
and he renewed the treaty he had formerly made with Sulei- 
A. D. man. During- two years, France, Spain, Italy, and the Low 
1544. Countries were the scenes of war ; but the only battle of con- 
sequence was that of Cerisoles, gained by the French, in 
which 10,000 Imperialists fell. A peace was concluded at 
Crespi. The chief articles were, that the emperor should 
give one of his own or his brother Ferdinand's daughters to 
the duke of Orleans, second son of Francis, and with her the 
duchy of Milan, and renounce all claim to Burgundy ; Fran- 
cis doing the same to Naples, Artois, and Flanders ; and that 
they should unite against the.Turks. 

Affairs of Germany. 

Charles was chiefly led to make the peace of Crespi by hia 
desire to humble the Protestant princes, and extend his power 
in the empire. He therefore made also a dishonorable truce 
with Suleiman, and entered into an alliance with the pope. 
A general council had been assembled at Trent ; but the Pro- 
testants, seeing the composition of it, refused to submit to its 
decrees. Charles, as his schemes were not fully ripe, sought 
still to cajole them ; but they saw through his views, and had 
recourse to arms. Unable to resist them, he negotiated till 
he had collected an army ; but he still declined a battle. Mean-' 
time Maurice, marquis of Misnia and Thuringia, a Protestant 
prince, who had not joined the confederates, secretly agreed 
to assist the emperor, on condition of getting the dignities 
and territory of his relative the elector of Saxony. He there- 
fore entered and overran the electorate. The elector returned 
with his troops to defend his dominions ; the city of Ulm sub- 
mitted ; its example was followed by others, and the whole 
confederacy fell to pieces, leaving the elector of Saxony and 
1547. the landgraf of Hesse at the mercy of the emperor. 

The pope, meantime, seeing the ultimate and real designs 
of the emperor, withdrew his troops, and Francis negotiated 
an alliance with him, Suleiman, England, and Venice, and 
encouraged and assisted with money the elector and the land- 
graf A conspiracy, headed by Fiesco, broke out at Genoa, 
and every thing seemed to combine to throw Charles into 
perplexity, when the death of Francis, and the suppression 
of Fiesco's conspiracy, encouraged him to proceed with vigor 
in Germany. The elector was defeated and taken prisoner 
at Mulhausen, and obliged to resign the electoral dignity ; 
the landgraf of Hesse, who was father-in-law to Maurice, 
submitted, on the elector of Brandenburg and Maurice be* 




Queen Mary I. of Bngland. 



399 



CHAP. 11, TIMES OF CHARLES V. 401 

coming" securities for his personal freedom; but Charles, in 
contempt of them, made him a close prisoner. All the mem- 
bers of the Smalcaldic league were treated with the greatest 
rigor. 

Charles now thought he might proceed without opposition 
in enslaving the German nation. As the council had been a. d, 
removed from Trent to Bologna, and he could not now ex- 1548L 
pect to influence it as he desired, he protested against it, and 
had a system of doctrine drawn up and presented to the diet 
at Augsburg, to be conformed to till a proper council could 
be called. This system, called the Interim, sought to steer 
between the two parties, leaning, however, greatly to the 
church of Rome. It gave great offence at Rome, and could 
not be fully carried into effect in Germany. Shortly after- 
wards, Charles made a stretch of power even beyond estab- 
lishing the Interim. When pressed to set the landgraf of 
Hesse at liberty, he, by a public deed, annulled the bond 
which his securities had entered into with him. This began 
to open the eyes of the German princes, and they now mani- 
fested a spirit of resistance. His brother Ferdinand had been 
made king of the Romans by his influence ; but, anxious to 
transmit the empire to his son Philip, he tried to make the 
electors recall their choice, or at least place Philip next in 
succession to his uncle ; but the opposition made was so 
strong, that he was obliged to abandon his design. 

The Lutheran princes were now fully aware of the de- 
signs of the emperor, and Maurice saw that it was necessary 
to set bounds to them. Equal to Charles liimself in dissimu- 
lation, he secretly made preparations against him, without 
losing his confidence. He contrived to get himself appointed 
general of the imperial army, sent to force the people of Mag- 
deburg to submit to the Interim, and after that object was 
effected, he, under various pretences, still kept that army in 
his pay. Charles, meanwhile, was residing at Inspruck, en- 
tirely occupied with the council, which had been brought 
back to Trent. Neither he nor Granville, his subtle prime 
minister, had any suspicion of the designs of Maurice, who 
had now formed a treaty with Henry 11. of France. 

Having completed his preparations, he sent an embassy to 
demand the liberty of the landgraf It was refused. An army 
of 20,000 foot and 2000 horse being assembled, Maurice 
threw off the mask, and assigned his reasons for taking arms; 
namely, to secure the Protestant religion ; to maintain the 
German constitution ; to deliver the landgraf of Hesse from 
prison. The king of France added a manifesto, in which he * 
34* 



402 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

styled himself Protector of the Liberties of Germany and 
its captive Princes. 

The French troops havingf overrun Lorraine, Maurice 
traversed rapidly Upper Germany : the emperor negotiated. 
Maurice advanced with all the speed he could make ; and 
was so near surprising the emperor, that he was obliged to fly 
into the Alps in a litter, in the midst of a dark rainy night. 
The council of Trent broke up, and did not reassemble. A 
conference was held at Passau : the terms proposed in the 
name of the princes of the empire were rejected by the em 
peror. Maurice laid siege to Frankfort on the Main, and the 
haughty spirit of Charles was forced to bend. The treaty of 
A. D. Passau overthrew the fabric he had so long been raising, and 
1552. placed the Protestant religion of Germany on a secure basis. 

His usual good fortune was now deserting Charles; he 
raised a large army, entered Lorraine, and laid siege to 
Metz ; but was forced to abandon it with the loss of 30,000 
men : he lost the footing he had established in Tuscany : the 
coast of Naples was ravaged by the Turkish fleet. In the 
tbllowing year he had some success in the Low Countries ; 
but the Austrians were unfortunate in Hungary. Germany 
was now so tranquil, that a diet assembled at Augsburg, and 

1555. by what is called the Recess of Augsburg established reli- 
gious peace in Germany, to the satisfaction of all parties. 

1556. To the surprise of all Europe, Charles abdicated his throne ; 
and, resigning his dominions to his son Philip, retired to spend 
the evening of his life in the monastery of St. Just in Spain. 
Having made a vain attempt to induce his brother Ferdinand 
to resign the dignity of king of the Romans, he left all his 
other dominions to Philip, now married to Mary queen of 
England, and formed for him a truce with France for five 
years. Ferdinand was chosen emperor by the electors. 

England. 

During the reign of Charles V., England was governed by 
Henry VIII., Edward VI., and Mary. Henry broke with the 

1533. court of Rome, and seized on the monastic estates : he ex- 
ercised over his people the most arbitrary power that Europe, 
perhaps, has ever witnessed. Not merely his will, but his 
caprice, was law ; he dictated in religion, and murdered un- 
der form of justice. In his foreign wars he made small and 

ir^3. useless acquisitions at vast expense. The victory of Flodden 
Field, gained in the early part of his reign over the Scots, 
whose king, James IV., fell in the field, was the greatest 

I' \7 achieved in this period by the English arms. Under Edward 
VI. the Protestant religion was much favored ; but his sister 



<^HAP. n TIMES OF CHARLES V. 403 

Mary, a big"ot, and wife of the dark, malignant Philip, exer- a. d. 
cised such cruelties against the professors of the reformed 1653 
faith, as have affixed in the minds of posterity eternal odium 
to her name. In her reign Calais, which England had held 
since the reign of Edward III., was surprised and taken by 1557 
the duke of Guise. 

Spain and Portugal. 

The commons of Spain made a stand in favor of their 
ereditary liberties, and they rose in arms against the des- 
potism of the emperor, under the command of the brave Pa- 
dilla ; but the nobles not joining them, as, if they had known 
their true interest, they should have done, the commons were 
crushed, and the liberties of Spain have been ever since in 
abeyance. 

By tlie talents, the valor, and the barbarous cruelty of Cor- 
tes and Pizarro, the empires of Mexico and Peru were at 
this time subjected to Spain. 

Don John III., a wretched bigot, with whom dates the de- 
cline of Portugal, introduced the inquisition and the new so- 
ciety of the Jesuits into that country. Priestly and regal 
authority conspired to oppress and degrade the nation. 

The Portuguese power was, meantime, under the valor 
and the ability of the great Albuquerque, Almeida, Castro, 
and others, extended from the gulf of Persia to the isles of 
Japan. At no period have greater actions been achieved : un- 
happily, they were disgraced by a spirit of savage cruelty 
and unprincipled rapacity. 

Italy. 

In the holy see the polished Leo X. was succeeded by the 
honest, well-meaning Adrian VI. It then passed to the timid, 
uncertain Clement VII., a Medici: next to the designing 
Paul III., only concerned to aggrandize the Farnesi, his own 
family : then to the lavish and tasteful Julius III. ; and, finally, 
to Paul IV., an aged monk, who fancied himself possessed of 
the power of a Gregory or an Innocent, and that the 16th 
century might be treated like the 13th. 

In Florence, Piero, son of Lorenzo de' Medici, had given 
up Pisa and Leghorn to the French, when Charles VIII. in- 1494 
vaded Italy. He was in consequence forced to leave the city ; 
his palaces were plundered, and a price set on tne head of 
the Medici. The old republican tumults ensued. Julian and 
John, the brothers of Piero, now dead, were restored bj- the I5ia 
Spanish arms at the desire of pope Julius II. ; and John suc- 
ceeding that pope under the name of Leo X., his inhuonce 



404 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

^ P streng-thened his brother, and, after tlie death of Julian, his 

1516. nephew Lorenzo, son of Piero. Lorenzo, equal to any of his 
family in the qualities that distinguished them, had meditated 
the extension of his power from sea to sea; but his early 
death, in his 27th year, cut short all his g^reat projects. He 
left an only child, the celebrated Catherine, afterwards queen 
of Fi-ance. 

Julius, the natural son of the brother of Lorenzo, who was 
murdered by the Pazzi, took the government. A conspiracy 
was formed against his power ; but he was supported by the 
emperor. He became pope as Clement VIL ; and Alexander, 
his own or Lorenzo IL's natural son, governed Florence. He 
was obliged to fly when the pope was besieged by the army 
of Bourbon ; but when Clement made peace with the em- 
peror, Charles gave his natural daughter Margaret in marriage 
to Alexander, and engaged to restore him to the wealth and 
power of his family. Florence resisted ; and after the peace 
of Cambray the imperial arms besieged it for ten months, and 
forced it to surrender, and the emperor declared Alexander 
hereditary duke of Florence. The rule of this protege of the 
pope and the emperor was, as was to be expected, tyrannical 

1537. and oppressive. His death was owing to his vices. His cousin 
Lorenzino de' Medici, who had been the ready agent of his 
lust, resolved to destroy him. Under pretext of putting him 
in possession of the person of a lady whose beauty had in- 
flamed him, he decoyed him to his house, where he secretly 
murdered him. Lorenzino fled to Venice : the better-disposed 
citizens wished to re-establish the republic, but the Medici 
party forced the senate to declare duke Cosimo, descended 
from a brother of the first Cosimo. A subtle, cruel, and un- 
grateful tyrant, Cosimo oppressed the people, and banished 

1557 those to whom he owed his power. He was himself but the 
mere slave of Spain. Cosimo added Sienna to his dominions, 
and in 1569 the pope, Pius V., conferred on him the title of 
Great duke of Tuscany. 

Genoa had, on account of her internal dissensions, put her- 
self under the protection of France, and her nobles had 
served in the army of Francis L She did not by this expe- 
dient escape the turbulence of the Adorni and Fregosi, whose 
feuds ran as high as ever. Andrew Doria determined to be 
the Timoleon of his country. He formed a league with 
Charles V., entered the port of Genoa, proclaimed an am- 
nesty, broke up the parties, and new-modelled the govern- 
ment, excluding only the Adorni and Fregosi from office. 
Doria sought neither power nor reward for himself; he nevei 




Hyder AJi. 



405 



CHAP. II. TIMES OF CHARLES V. 407 

bore the office of doge. He died, honored and lamented, in ^^ j^ 
his 94th year. 1500. 

Venice remained the most independent state in Italy, and 
was always on good terms with Charles V., by whose terri- 
tories she was now nearly surrounded. The popes had brought 
Bologna, Ravenna, and Ancona fully under their power. 
Parma and Piacenza were, with the consent of Charles V., 
given by Paul III. to his son Piero Farnese, and on his death 
to Ottavio Farnese, married to a natural daughter of the em- 1547 
peror. Ottavio was succeeded by Alexander, the celebrated 
general of Philip II. 

Italy was now tranquil ; all her states either belonged to or 
were in amity and alliance with Spain. She had no disturb- 
ances to dread ; her ancient spirit declined ; she sank into 
luxury, occupied in the enjoyment of her arts and natural 
advantages. 

Denmark and Sweden. 

These countries do not yet enter on the great theatre of 
Europe. Christian II. had proved victorious, by the employ- 
ment of treachery and force, in the struggle for Swedish in- 
dependence. He was crowned at Stockholm, and he and his 
confederate, the archbishop of Upsala, by an almost unparal- 
leled piece of perfidy, publicly executed ninety-four of the 
Swedish nobles. But Gustavus Vasa, the son of one of those 
who were murdered, escaped from the prison in which he 
was confined, roused the miners of Dalecarlia to take arms 
for their country, and was successfijl in his first attempts ; 
gradually all the people rose against the tyrant, Gustavus 
was elected king of Sweden, and he governed with wisdom 1523 
and good policy. Gustavus established the Lutheran religion 
in Sweden, over which he reigned 37 years. 1,560 

Christian II. was for his tyranny deposed, and the crown 
given to his uncle Frederic duke of Holstein, who entered 
into an alliance with Gustavus and the Hanse towns against 1533 
.the deposed tyrant. Frederic's son. Christian III., was one 
of the best princes of the age. He also established the Lu- 
theran religion m his dominions. He died a year before Gus- 1559 
tav.us. 

Turkey, 

Suleiman I., called by the Christians the Great and the 1520 
Magnificent, by his own subjects the Lawgiver {Kanooni)^ 
the greatest of the Ottoman monarchs, succeeded bis father 
Selim. In the first year of his reign a war broke out with 
Hungary, in which Belgrade and other fortresses were taken 1622 



408 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

by the Ottomans. The following year the island of Rhodes 
was conquered, after a most gallant defence made by the 
knights of St. John. In the second Hungarian campaign of 

^ jj, Suleiman he took Peterwaradin, and the Hungarian king, 

1526. Ladislaus, lost the battle and his life on the plain of Mohacs, 
and Ofen, the capital of Hungary, opened her gates. In a 

}529. third Hungarian campaign Ofen was taken by storm, Vienna 
was besieged ; but Suleiman was forced to retire from before 

1532. its walls. Suleiman again invaded Hungary at the head of 
200,000 men ; but he was unable to overcome the resistance 

1634. of the town of Giins. A war with Persia, in which Tebreez 
was again taken, and which gave Bagdad to Suleiman, next 
followed. 

Khair-ed-deen Barbarossa, the celebrated corsair, con- 

1535. quered Tunis for Suleiman ; but it was retaken, and restored 
to Muley Hassan, by the emperor Charles V. Suleiman next 
conquered the isles of the Archipelago, and he fitted out a 

1547. fleet in the Red Sea, to oppose the Portuguese in India. Twc 
more campaigns against Hungary followed, and peace was at 
length concluded with Ferdinand and the emperor ; but war 
soon broke out again. A large fleet and army were sent 
against Malta, which the emperor had given to the knights 

I5f^ of St. John ; but the valor of the knights forced them to retire 
with disgrace. Suleiman, the greatest of the Ottoman sul- 
tans, headed his armies in thirteen campaigns, and gave the 
empire its greatest extent, at which it continued for more 
than a century ere it begaa to decrease. Genius and learn- 
ing were encouraged by this munificent prince, whose reign 
was the Augustan age of Turkey; but the deaths of no less 
than ten princes of the blood, most of them his sons and 
grandchildren, fix an indelible stain on his memory. 



CHAP. III. 

TIMES OF PHILIP II. 

State of Europe at Philip's Accession. 

No monarch ever ascended a throne with fairer prospects 
than Philip II. ; none ever had himself more thoroughly to 
blame for the extinction of his brightest hopes. His father 
had left him Spain, humbled under absolute power, but not 
yet degraded by it, Milan, Naples, and Sicily, the Nether- 
lands, Mexico, and Peru, now in the vigor of their gold and 
silver harvest ; he was married to the queen of England ; his 
uncle was emperor of Germany king of Bohemia and Hun- 



CHAP. in. TIMES OF PHILIP II. 409 

gary, and possessor of the Austrian dominions. Genoa and 
the Catholic cantons of Switzerland were allied with Spain ; * 
Venice feared her; the pope was obliged to support a prince 
who proclaimed himself the defender of the faith. His 
nephew, Sebastian king of Portugal, was a child. France, 
after the death of Henry II., had fallen into weakness and 
confusion. Suleiman had been succeeded by Selim, a weak 
unenterprising prince. Finally, the Spanish armies were 
still the first in Europe, and were commanded by the duke 
of Savoy, Don John of Austria, and the prince of Parma, three 
of the greatest generals of the age. 

Philip's own character, thoughtful, reserved, patient, inde- 
fatigable, might seem well calculated to make the most of all 
these advantages; but it was the very defect of his character 
that lost him them all. A gloomy superstition pervaded 
every region of his mind, and tinged every thought. Religion, 
with him, was the one thing needful ; but his religion consist- 
ed in external observances, and in the belief of the absurdest 
doctrines of popery. Steadfastness in this religion justified 
every crime ; nothing was to stand in the way of his plan of 
reducing the Christian world under the one faith and the one 
master. And all was sacrificed to this chimera. 

The first operations of Philip's reign were fortunate. The 
pope insisted on Henry II. not adhering to the truce of Vau- 
celles ; the war was renewed, and Philip's able general, Phil- 
ibert duke of Savoy, gained the battle of St. Quintin. The 
Spanish arms were everywhere successful, and the pope and 
Henry were glad to treat of peace ; a measure grateful to 
Philip, who was anxious to return to Spam, and who had all 
along had his doubts of the lawfulness of bearing arms against 
the pope. Mary of England was at this time dead, and her 
sister Elizabeth had ascended the throne. Philip and Henry 
were suitors for the favor of the young queen ; the former 
sought her hand. All parties were anxious for peace. A a. d. 
treaty was, therefore, easily entered into at Chateau Cam- 15{>9 
bresis ; and as almost all the states of Europe were included 
in it as principals or allies, a general peace and repose was 
produced by it. 

Charles V. had died the year before ; Mary of England was 
dead ; Henry II. was killed at a tournament shortly after the 
peace ; the restless Paul IV. survived him but a few weeks. 
A new set of actors enter on the scene. 

France. 

Henry II. was succeeded by his eldest son, Francis II., the 
husband of Mary the young queen of Scotland. Protestant- 
85 



410 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

ism had made considerable progress in France. The king of 
Navarre, the prince of Conde, the admiral Coligni, his brother 
Andelot, and several other persons of the highest rank, were 
attached to the reformed faith. 

The powerful family of Guise, princes of Lorraine, uncles 
to the young queen, supported the old religion. Francis was 
persuaded by them to revive the laws against heresy. The 

A. D. Protestants (in France called Huguenots) saw their danger 

1560. and resolved to anticipate it. A conspiracy was formed to 
seize the king. It was detected, and the accomplices pun- 
ished. But an assembly of the states was held, and the penal 
laws suspended. The Guises, however, resolved to proceed, 
and the king of Navarre and his brother the prince of Conde 
were seized and imprisoned. The sudden death of Francis 
checked their career. His young brother, Charles IX., came 
to the throne, and the queen-mother was appointed guardian. 
As " divide and govern'^ was the maxim of Catherine, she 
gave high office and power to the Protestant leaders, as a 
counterpoise to the influence of the Guises. 

1662. The policy of the queen did not produce the desired effect. 
Animosity ran high between the two parties. The attend- 
ants of the duke of Guise insulted some Protestants at their 
worship, and sixty of the latter were slain. The Protestants 
all over France took arms ; fourteen armies were levied in 
different parts of the kingdom. The conflict was carried on 
with the most extreme virulence. Several of the principal 
cities of France, as Orleans, Rouen, Bourges, Lyons, Tours, 
were in the hands of the Huguenots. Philip of Spain 
sent 6000 men to aid the Catholics. Conde, the head of the 
Protestants, addressed himself to Elizabeth queen of England, 
and an army was levied in Germany by Andelot and led to 
Orleans. The king of Navarre and Montmorency had joined 
the Guise party : the former was killed at the siege of Rouen ; 
the latter commanded at the battle of Dreux, the first fought 
between the parties. 

1663 I The duke of Guise laid siege to Orleans. While engaged 
in it, he was assassinated by a Protestant gentleman named 
Poltrot. His death was an irreparable loss to his party, and 
they now willingly came to an accommodation with the 
Protestants.l 

But the peace was intended only to lull the Protestants. 
Catherine, though utterly devoid of principle, had a hatred 
of the reformed faith, and a zeal for the ancient one. A meet- 
ing was concerted at Bayonne between Charles and his sister, 
the queen of Spain. Catherine accompanied her son ; the 
duke of Alva attended his mistress. Festivities and gaietie« 




Coligni. 



411 



CHAP. III. TIMES OF PHILIP II. 413 

of every kind occupied each day. All apparently respired 
joy and peace : but the tempest was secretly brewed in the 
summer sky. A Holy League was formed between the 
courts of France and Spain : the glory of God was to be pro- a. d 
moted, heresy in the dominions of both extirpated. 1566 

The Protestants of France soon learned what had been 
concerted. They flew to arms ; a battle was fought at St. 
Denis, in which they were worsted. They laid siege to 1568. 
Chartres, and forced the court to agree to a peace. This 
peace was of short duration : the queen-mother laid a scheme 
for seizing Condi and Culigni; they fled to Rochelle; the 
war was renewed. The duke of Anjou commanded the 
Catholics, and gained the famous battle of Jarnac, in which 
the prince of Conde was taken and murdered. Coligni hav- 1S69 
ing placed at the head of the Protestants the young king of 
Navarre and the young prince of Conde, made every effort to 
animate his party, and at length laid siege to Poitiers, The 
young duke of Guise threw himself into that town, and de- 
fended it with such valor and skill, that Coligni was forced 
to raise the siege. Secretly aided by Elizabeth, he collected 
a considerable force ; but at the battle of Moncontour he was. 
wounded and defeated with the loss of nearly 10,000 men. 
The court deemed the adverse party now completely crushed, 
when, to their amazement, Coligni advanced with a large 
army, and prepared to lay siege to Paris, and the king was 
forced to make another treaty and peace with the Protestants. 

The treachery long meditated against the Protestants was 
now ripe. Charles assumed the appearance of the utmost 
liberality of sentiment: a marriage was proposed between 
his sister Margaret and the young king of Navarre. All the 
great leaders of the Protestants went to Paris to the celebra- 
tion of it. They were received with smiles and caresses by 
the king and the queen-mother ; all was festivity till the eve 
of St. Bartholomew (Aug. 24) arrived, when, by the secret I572i 
orders of the king, a bloody and indiscriminate massacre of 
the Protestants commenced. No rank or age was spared; 
500 gentlemen, including Coligni, and 10,000 inferior per- 
sons, perished in Paris alone, and a like carnage took place 
in all the great towns of the kingdom whither similar orders 
had been sent. It is computed that 60,000 persons were 
massacred. 

The Protestants throughout Europe were filled with horror 
and consternation. At Rome and Spain the account was re- 
ceived with ecstasy, and public thanks returned to heaven 
But Charles did not dare to avow his real motives ; he pre- 
tended that a conspiracy of the Protestants had been detected, 
35* 



414 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

and thus prevented. Instead of losing* courage, these now 
only respired vengeance. They took valiantly to their arms: 
the town of Sancerre stood a memorable siege. Rochelle held 
out eight months against the whole power of France ; and 
J D. the duke of Anjou, after losing 24,000 men before it, was 
1573 compelled to grant the citizens an advantageous peace. 

This was the fourth peace ; but the Protestants could put 
no trust in the perfidious monarch. They rejoiced at his 
574. death, which soon afterwards occurred. He was succeeded 
by his brother, the duke of Anjou, Henry HI., who had been 
elected king of Poland. Henry, by the advice of his mother, 
sought to play the parties against each other, and thereby 

1576. increase the royal authority. He gave most advantageous 
terms to the Protestants, now headed by his brother, the duke 
of Anjou, and the young king" of Navarre. The Catholic party, 
directed by the duke of Guise, were disgusted by this mea- 

1577. sure: they formed their celebrated League; and the king-, 
to weaken it, declared himself the head of it. The war was 
renewed ; but soon terminated by a new peace. The League 
looked up to Philip, the Huguenots to Elizabeth : the king, 
sunk in pleasure and in odious vices, was despised and dis- 
trusted by both parties. The duke of Anjou was a restless 
ambitious prince : his death seemed to relieve the king from 
difficulties; but it only plunged him into greater. The king 
of Navarre was now the next heir; the League was revived ; 
the cardinal of Bourbon set up as a rival to the king- of Na- 
varre ; and the king forced to declare war against the Hugue- 
nots. Great valor and talent were displayed by the king of 

687. Navarre. At Coutras he gained a complete victory over the 
royal army ; but the power of the League was still an over- 
match for the Huguenots. The king was driven from Paris, 
and threatened with degradation from his throne : his spirit 
was roused, and he caused the duke and the cardinal of Guise 
to be assassinated. The doctors of the Sorbonne declared 
the people released from their allegiance ; and the duke of ■ 
Mayenne, brother to the duke of Guise, was chosen Lieuten- 

1589. ant-general of the State royal and Crown of France. The 
king entered into an alliance with the king of Navarre, and 
both sovereigns advanced to Paris at the head of their armies. 
James Clement, a Dominican monk, here assassinated the 
king", with whom ended tiie line of Valois. The holy deed 
was, as usual, applauded throughout the Catholic world ; and 
Sixtus V. compared it with the Incarnation and the Resur- 
rection. 

The royal army abandoned the king of Navarre, now 
Henry IV., and the League proclaimed the cardinal of Bour 



CHAP. II f. TIMES OF PHII IP 11. 415 

bon, under the name of Charles X. Henry retired to Nor- 
mandy, followed by the troops of the League, under the duke 
of Mayenne. The queen of England sent him troops and 
money. His forces were inferior in number, but superior in a n 
valor, to those of the duke ; and at Ivry he gained a com- 1590 
plete victory over him and his Spanish auxiliaries. Henry 
eoon afterwards invested Paris; the duke of Parma hastened 
from the Low Countries to its relief; the siege was raised ; 
but the duke declined the proffered battle. Some fresh at- 
tempts on Paris were baffled ; the duke of Parma left 8000 
men with the League ; the pope ordered all the Catholics to 
abandon Henry, and sent money and troops to the duke of 
Savoy, who had made himself master of Provence ; the young 
duke of Guise made his escape from Tours. Elizabeth, on 
the other hand, again sent troops and money; Henry laid siege 
to Rouen ; but the prince of Parma forced him to raise it, and 
again retreated without fighting. Lesdiguieres chased the 
duke of Savoy out of Provence ; and victories were gained 
by Turenne, and other generals of Henry. 

At length ail parties grew weary of the war; the' duke l69Sfc 
of Mayenne was disgusted by the faction of the Sixteen in 
Paris, who were entirely in the Spanish interest; Henry 
was pressed by the Catholics of his party to declare himself 
on the article of religion, a thing he had hitherto avoided 
doing ; the king of Spain, too, pressed the duke of Mayenne 
to call a meeting of the states, hoping to gain the crown for 
his own daughter Isabella. The states met ; Philip's ambas- 
sador exerted himself in vain to get a declaration in favor of 
the infanta ; the parliament of Paris declared that the Salic 
law could not be set aside. 

Meanwhile Henry, though successful in arms, saw that he 
never could obtain the kingdom by force ; and, with the con- 
sent of his wisest friends, he embraced the Catholic religion. 
This measure was not at first productive of all the advan- 
tages that might have been expected : both parties were dis- 
trustful ; but gradually town after town and noble after noble 
submitted to their king. He led an army into Burgundy, ex- 
pelled the Spaniards, and obliged the duke of Mayenne to 
eeek an accommodation ; he received the pope's absolution ; 
ihe duke of Guise, now his friend, surprised Marseilles; the 
duke of Mayenne submitted, and continued ever after warmly 
attached to his person and government ; but the archduke 
Albert surprised Calais ; the Spanish governor of Dourlens 
took Amiens ; and the French finances were in so dilapidated 
a state, that Henry could not raise an army. The prudence 
ar.d ability of the great Sully enabled him at last to take the 



416 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART HI 

A. D. field at the head of a well-appointed army of more than 20,000 

1597. rnen ; and, in spite of the efforts of Albert, Amiens was forced 
to surrender. 

The duke of Mercoeur was still in arms in Britany. Henry 
marched against him ; but the duke offering his only daugh- 
ter and a large dower to king Henry's natural son, the pro- 
posal was accepted, and the duke submitted. All France 
now cheerfully obeyed its lawful monarch. To dissipate the 
apprehensions of the Huguenots, Henry summoned the head 
of them to Nantes, and gave the celebrated edict named from 

»598 that town, which secured them the exercise of their religion, 
and declared them eligible to all places of trust, profit, and 
honor. Peace was now absolutely necessary to France, so 
long torn by civil dissensions ; and Henry concluded at Ver- 
vins a treaty with the Spanish king. 

During the remaining years of his reign, Henry, aided by 
his wise and virtuous friend and minister Sully, was indefati- 
gable in restoring France to order, tranquillity, and power. 
He was still, however, harassed by the intrigues of the 
Spanish cabinet; and at length he took the occ&sion of the 
disputed succession of the duchies of Cleves and Juliers to 
undertake his long-meditated plan of humbling the house ot 
Austria ; but in the midst of his preparations he perished by 

1610 the dagger of the assassin Ravaillac. Henry was justly 
styled the Great : he possessed all kingly virtues ; the blem- 
ish of his character was his passion for women. After the 
death of Margaret of Valois, he married Mary of Medici, 
daughter of Francis duke of Tuscany. 

The Netherlands. 

The Netherlands had grown wealthy by trade. A freedom 
of municipal govemnient, and consequently of opinion, pre- 
vailed in their cities, and the reformed doctrines easily ob- 
tained a footing there. Charles V. had sought in vain to 
suppress them. Philip disliked the people, and he detested 
the new opinions; he insulted and offended the counts of 
Egmont and Horn, and the prince of Orange. They became 
the leaders of the oppressed people. Philip determined to 
crush the nation ; and the relentless duke of Alva was sent 
with a large army as governor to the Netherlands. Egmont 
and Horn, who had been the chief agents in composing the 
ferment of the Flemings, were notwithstanding brought to the 
block by Alva. Nothing was to be heard but cries of despair, 
to be seen but torture and death. 

William of Nassau, prince of Orange, led an army out of 
Germany, and offered battle in vain to Alva. The Spaniards 




Henry IV. of France. 



417 



/ 



CHAP. HI. TIMES OF PHILll' II. 419 

held all the fortified towns, and the prince was forced to dis- 
band his troops. Alva's tyranny knew no bounds; the people 
dared not to oppose. The queen of England, though favor- 
able to the Fleming's, was, at the desire of the king of Spain, 
obliged to exclude their privateers from her ports. The 
Gueux {Beggars), as their crews were called, seized on the a. d 
port of tlie Brille in Holland. Alva sent a force against 1572 
them ; tlie people of the neighborhood rose and defeated it, 
and put themselves under the prince of Orange, by whose 
exertions the province of Holland, and shortly after that of 
Zealand, cast off the Spanish yoke. The prince took Mech- 
lin, Oudenard, and Dendermond; the gallant defence of 
Haarlem convinced Alva of the inutility of strong measures. 
He tried in vain to induce the people of Holland to submit to 
the clemency of Philip; but they, who knew what the tender 
mercies of Alva and his master were, set them at defiance.' 
The duke laid siege to Alcmaar; he was repulsed: he fitted 
out a large fleet; it was defeated by the Zealanders: he 1563 
prayed to be recalled, and left the Low Countries, boasting 
that in five years he had delivered 18,000 persons to the exe- 
cutioner. 

Alva was succeeded by Requesens, commander of Castile, 
a man of mild disposition ; but the war still raged with al- 
ternate success. Leyden was invested by the Spaniards; 1571. 
the citizens endured every extreme of famine and distress ; 
the Dutch opened the dikes ; a violent wind drove the waters 
against the Spanish works ; and the commander Valdez was, 
after losing the flower of his army, forced to raise the siege. 
Conferences were now held, but to no purpose, at Breda, un- 1575. 
der the mediation of the emperor. The war was renewed : 
the Spaniards proved too powerful for the two provinces; 
they had entered Zealand, and were meditating the conquest 
of Holland, when, in their despair, the Dutch offered the 
sovereignty of their country to the queen of England. Thai 
prudent princess declined it, but mediated for them in vain 
with Philip. The war raged as fiercely as ever. 

Meanwhile Requesens died ; and the Spanish garrison 1576. 
committed such atrocities at Antwerp, that all the provinces, 
except Luxemburg, entered into the Pacification of Ghent, 
whose object was the expulsion of foreign troops, and the 
restoration of the ancient liberties of the states. Don Jcihn 
of Austria, the succeeding governor, seeing the inutility of 
resistance, agreed to confirm the pacification, and peace was 
»»t length restored. 

The ambition of Don John violated the peace, and war 
broke out anew. As he had meditated marrying the queen 



420 HTSTOIIY OP THE WORLD. PART III. 

^ P of Scots, and claiming' the crown of England, Elizabeth nc» 

1578. longer hesitated to assist the malcontents with men and 
money. The count palatine of the Rhine also collected an 
army to aid them. But discord arose among the Netherland- 
ers. Jealous of the prince of Orange, the duke d'Arschot 
and other Catholic nobles privately invited Mathias, brotlier 
to the emperor Rodolf IL, to take the government. Mathiaa 
suddenly appeared ; the prince of Orange prudently joined 
him ; Don John was deposed, and Mathias made the prince 
his lieutenant, to the great mortification of d'Arschot. 

Don John, bejing jomed by the prince of Parma and 18,000 
veterans, attacked and defeated the army of the states at 
Gemblours. Dissension continued between the two parties. 
Mathias was despised ; the prince of Orange suspected by 
both on account of his moderation. By the influence of the 
Catholic party, the duke of Anjou was declared Defender of 
the Liberties of the Netherlands. Don John dying shortly 
afterwards, the command of the Spanish forces passed to the 
prince of Parma, one of the first generals and statesmen of 
the age. 

The prince of Orange saw the necessity of a closer union 

1579. among the Protestant states. Deputies met at Utrecht (Jan. 
15), from Holla:.-, Zealand, Utrecht, Friesland, Groningen, 

■ Overyssel, and Guelderland, and signed the famous union of 
the Seven United Provinces. The king of Spain sought in 
vain to detach the prince of Orange from the union ; he was 
resolved to stand or fall with his country. The prince of 
Parma made a treaty with the people of the southern states ; 
the Catholics in general favored him, and he took several 
towns : the states, however, continued resolute ; they again 
offered the sovereignty to Elizabeth, and on her refusing it, 

1580. conferred it on the duke of Anjou. 

The duke of Anjou forced the Spaniards to raise the siege 
of Cambray ; but when he went to England on the bootless 
project of marrying Elizabeth, the prince of Parma gained 
great advantages in the Netherlands. When he returned, 
he made a rash and violent attempt on the liberties of the 
states, and was obliged to retire to France, where he shortly 
afterwards died. Mathias had retired to Germany, and the 
conflict was now between the two great princes of Orange 
and Parma. 

Philip had set a reward on the head of the prince of Or- 
ange, and the dagger of an assassin, Balthazar Gerard, de- 
585 prived the states of their able and patriotic leader. Their 
gratitude made them appoint his son Maurice, a yoi th of 
eighteen years, their Stadtholder, and captain-general by sea 



•;HAP. fll. TIMES OF PHILIP II. 421 

and land ; their rage stimulated them to renewed exertion. 
The prince of Parma had reduced Ghent and Brussels ; he 
now invested Antwerp : the citizens opened their sluices and 
broke down their dikes ; the prince cut a canal to carry off 
the waters ; he erected a fortified bridg-e across the Scheld, 
to prevent the town being relieved by sea. The Hollanders, 
expecting that the fall of Antwerp would benefit their town 
of Amsterdam, obstructed every measure for its relief The 
city was forced to surrender. It declined, and Amsterdam 
flourished. 

The loss of Antwerp was a great blow to the states. Eliza- 
beth saw now the necessity of aiding them effectually. The 
earl of Leicester was sent to Holland with 5000 foot and 1000 
horse. The states made him their governor; but his inso- 
lence and incapacity obliged his mistress to recall him. Prince 
Maurice was made governor, and lord Willoughby was ap- 
pointed to command the English forces. The prince of Parma 
was now obliged, more than once, to lead his army into France 
in aid of the League, and he was occupied in preparing for 
the invasion of England ; so that the war was not prosecuted a. d. 
with very great vigor. His death, as he was once more pre- 1^92. 
paring to enter France, delivered Maurice from a powerful 
opponent. 

He was succeeded in the chief command by count Mans- 
feld, an able and experienced officer. The scale of the states 
now preponderated ; prince Maurice took Breda before the 1594. 
eyes of the Spanish commander, and then Gertruydenburg 
and Groningen. At Turnhout, prince Maurice and Sir Fran- 1S97 
cis Vere gained a complete victory over the Spaniards. The 
states refused now to be included in the peace of Vervins. 
Philip XL died. He had seen how fruitless was the contest, 1598 
and, as a decent mode of ending it, he had transferred to his 
daughter Isabella, contracted to the archduke Albert, the 
sovereignty of the Low Countries. Albert wrote letters to 
the United Provinces, entreating them to submit to their 
natural princes, who would govern them with justice and 
lenity. They returned no answer. An edict was issued, pre- « 
eluding them from all intercourse with the Spanish Nether- 
'ands, Spain, and Portugal. Philip 11. had wisely never med- 
dled with their trade. The Dutch sent a fleet to cruise 
against the Spaniards, and they turned their views towards 
the East Indies, and soon possessed the far greater part of the 
lucrative trade which the Portuguese had enjoyed. ' 

The war in the Low Countries was continued with spirit 
Each side was strongly reinforced ; towns were taken on both 
Hides* the two armies came to a general engagement at, 
36 



422 



HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TTT. 



A. D. Nieuport near Ostend, amd after a well-sustained contest the 
1630. Spanish veterans gave way. But the troops of prince Mau- 
rice were so exhausted by fatigue, that he was unable to un 
dertake any thing before Albert had collected a superior army. 

1601. Overtures of peace were made to and rejected by the states. 
Maurice took Rhinburg ; Albert laid siege to Ostend, which 
was vigorously defended by Sir Francis Vere, and he was 

1602. forced to turn the siege into a blockade. The states changed 
the garrison, putting in fresh troops ; the besiegers were re- 
inforced by 8000 Italians, under the marquis Spinola, who 
took the command, and by his skill reduced the town to ruins. 

1604. An honorable capitulation was granted by him to the gar- 
rison. 

This siege cost the archduke 70,000 men, and Maurice had 
meantime made acquisitions equal to Ostend. It was resolved 
to prosecute the war with vigor ; Spinola was made com- 
mander-in-chief: he had during two years considerable suc- 
cess ; but his troops mutinied for want of pay, and he gave 
it as his opinion that the subjugation of the United Provinces 
was impracticable. The pride of Spain was reduced to treat 

1607 with the Dutch as an independent nation. A suspension of 
arms was agreed to, and finally, though opposed by the Or- 
ange party, a truce for ten years was made at the Hague, un 

i609. der the mediation of France and England. 

Thus, after a severe contest of thirty-seven years, inde- 
pendence was assured to the United Provinces. During the 
conflict they had increased in wealth, had made extensive 
acquisitions in the East, and established a navy equal to any 
at the time. 

England. 

1559. The throne of England was at this eventftil period filled 
by Elizabeth, daughter of Henry VIII. and sister of the two 
preceding sovereigns ; a princess whose many great qualities 
have, in despite of some defects and weaknesses, and one 
crime (as we must call it), obtained her the applause of suc- 
ceeding ages. On her succession, the Protestant religion was 
lastingly established in England. Philip of Spain, despair- 
mg of obtaining her hand, was now become her implacable 
foe ; and as the Catholics denied the legality of her mother's 
marriage, they consequently denied her right to the throne, 
and they asserted the priority of the claims of Mary queen 
of Scots, descended from the daughter of Henry VII. This 
last ill-fated princess, by this claim, and by her imprudence 
and her superior beauty, excited the envy and jealousy of 
Elizabeth ; her Catholic bigotry alarmed the fears of the Pro- 




423 



CHAP. III. TIMES OF PHILIP II. 425 

testants; her crimes alienated from her many who pitied her 
misfortunes. Yet, guilty as was Mary and as was Elizabeth, 
their times, their situations, and other circumstances, will 
offer many an excuse for each ; and ipiiy will often take the 
place of blame in the mind of the attentive examiner of their 
history, especially of that of the unfortunate queen of Scots, 
who, brought up amid the milder manners of the court of 
France, was ill-fitted to contend with the turbulence and bar- 
barism of her native realm ; and who, imprisoned by her own 
subjects, and thence flying into England to seek the protec- 
tion of a sister-queen and relative, found another prison, and, 
after a confinement of nineteen years, an unjust and igno- 
minious death. 

Philip had long been making preparations for the invasion a. ». 
of England : 50,000 men were assembled under the prince 1^^" 
of Parma in the Low Countries for that purpose ; ships were 
built in all the ports of his dominions. The Invincible Fleet, i58a 
as it was proudly called, sailed at length from the port of 
Lisbon ; but the courage and skill of the English mariners 
defeated it; the winds of heaven dispersed and shattered it; 
and but a small portion revisited Spain. '■'- 1 sent my fleet to 
combat the English, not the elements. God he praised, the 
calamity is not greater,'''' expressed the real or affected resig- 
nation of Philip: ^' Affiavit Deus, et dissipantvr inirnici*^ 
the real or affected piety of Elizabeth, who had evinced, in 
the season of danger, a spirit worthy of the greatest of her 
predecessors. 

With Elizabeth ended the house of Tudor, a race of born 
despots. Henry VIL was subtle and oppressive ; Henry VHL 
barbarous and capricious ; Edward VI, died before he could 
show his disposition ; Mary was an odious and cruel fanatic ; 
Elizabeth was insincere and arbitrary, but prudent and judi 
cious. She loved her subjects ; but on the same principle as 
her contemporary Shah Abbas loved his, — ^because they were 
hers, and she knew that their prosperity was her power ; but 
woe to any of them who dared oppose her will or her caprice ! 
Yet, like every truly great mind,, she could yield to circum- 
stances, and bend before the storm which it were folly to 
resist. 

During the reign of Elizabeth, the rebellions of Desmond 
and O'Neal in Ireland were crushed ; a colony, called Vir- 
ginia, was planted in the New World; Sir Francis Drake 
sailed round the globe ; an intercourse was opened with the 
great empire of Russia. Trade and commerce were en- 
couraged by this great princess ; literature was held in honor 
and flourished. 
36* 



426 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART iir. 

Portugal. 

A. D. Don John III. left his dominions to his son Don Sebastian 

1555. a boy under ag-e. Don Henry, grand-uncle to the young 
prince, was in holy orders and a cardinal : the Jesuits man- 
aged to have the young king- committed to their care, and 
they used all their influence to extend the power of the 
church, and of their own order. Don Alessio Meneses in 
vain tried to withdraw the king- from them ; in vain his grand- 
mother, the sister of Charles V., wished to have the young 
monarch married. She was threatened and insulted by the 
holy fathers, who sought to dissipate his mind by frequent 
journeys; and when the people began to murmur, excited 
him to an expedition to Africa. 

A Sheriif, i. e. a descendant of the prophet, had seized on 
the throne of the Merinide emir of Morocco, and founded the 

1519 dynasty which still reigns in that country. His successor, 
Mohammed Sheriff, conquered Fez. In the reign of Sebas- 
tian the throne was occupied by Abdallah Sheriff. Sebastian, 
in the ardor of youth, and encouraged by the Jesuits, was 
preparing to sail for India, and have himself crowned emperor 
of the East, when a brother of the Sheriff, expelled from Mo- 
rocco, came to seek his protection. The invasion of Africa 
was resolved on. The old queen, who foresaw and vainly 
endeavored to avert its disastrous consequences, died, it is 
said, of grief Full of enthusiasm, but ignorant of war, the 
young king passed over to Africa at the head of 20,000 men. 
The aged Sheriff met him at Alcazar-quivir with a superior 
army. Exhausted by age and disease, Abdallah expired in 
the midst of the conflict ; but a complete victory crowned the 

1578. African arms. Sebastian disappeared, most probably slain ; 
but his subjects long continued to believe him living, and to 
look for his return. 

Cardinal Henry mounted the throne of Portugal. On his 
death the succession was disputed. The only male issue left 
by the four sons of Don Manuel was Antonio, prior of Prato, 
the natural son of Antonio duke of Beja. Don Edward had 
left two daughters, one married to the g-reat prince of Parma ; 
but as she was thus become a foreigner, she was excluded by 
the Constitutions of Lamego : the other was married to the 
duke of Braganza, and he had by law a right to the crown. 
Philip II. was son to a daughter of Don Manuel ; but as she 
had become a foreigner by her marriage, she could transmit 
no claim. Philip, however, set up a claim. As he was by far 
the most powerful of the condidates, he very easily made it 
good : the prior of Prato alone resisted. The state of tlie con- 



CHAP. III. TIMES OF PHILIP II 427 

tinent prevented any princes supporting the just claims of 
the duke of Braganza ; and he himself was a quiet, easy man, 
satisfied with obtaining honors and dignities. Philip was ^^ ^ 
crowned at Lisbon. 1581 

Thus, 867 years after the fall of the Gothic kingdom, the 
whole peninsula was reunited under one head ; happy if that 
head had not been Philip II.! 

Germany. 

Charles V. was succeeded in the imperial dignity by his 
orother Ferdinand, king of the Romans, This excellent 
prince directed all his efforts to the establishment of civil 
and religious concord in the empire. By the diet of Ratisbon, 1377 
a reconciliation was made between the houses of Hesse and 
Nassau. The council of Trent was reassembled : but the 
Protestant princes met and came to the determination of ad- 156L 
hering to the Confession of Augsburg whatever the council 
might decree. All the well-meant efforts of the emperor 
were in vain; the council, bent only on the now hopeless 
project of exalting the power of the church, would listen to 
none of his prudent suggestions. After passing a set of de- 
crees, which effectually closed the doors against unity, this 1563 
last of general councils was dissolved. 

Maximilian II. had been chosen king of the Romans in the 1564 
lifetime of his father. Immediately on his accession he was 
engaged in war with Suleiman I., who even meditated the 
conquest of the German empire. Selim II. concluded a truce 
with the emperor. During the remainder of the reign of this 
mild and excellent prince, Germany enjoyed peace and tran- 
quillity. His son and successor, Rodolf II., inherited his pacific 157d. 
temper. 

Poland. 

At this period the Polish constitution underwent a great 1572 
alteration. On the death of the estimable Sigismund Au- 
gustus, the last male of the Jagellons, the diet, consisting of 
182 deputies, met, and determined that no king should have 
the power of nominating his successor. The election of a 
king was thus regulated : — On the plain of Vola, near War- 
saw, the senate and the people assembled. The former was 
composed of two archbishops, fifleen bishops, thirty-seven voi- 
vodes (dukes), eighty-two castellans (senators and lieutenants 
of the voivodes), and ten ministers of state. The senate met 
m a wooden house ; the deputies and the other nobles around 
it, within a wall and ditch. The king assembled and pre- 
sided over this diet, wherein aU matters relating to internal 



428 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

and external policy were transacted. The powers of the 
monarch were extremely limited ; but he appointed to ecclesi- 
astical dignities, conferred nobility, commanded the army, and 
his assent was necessary to give validity to the acts of the 
diet. 

The Protestant religion having made great progress in 
Poland, the greater part of the senate were of that persua- 
sion ; the most perfect toleration prevailed ; all dissidents, as 
the non-catholics were styled, were eligible to all offices. 
The Arians and Socinians were numerous in Poland; the 
latter, when persecuted everywhere else, found an asylum 
there. Racau was their chief establishment. 

A. D. On the death of Sigismund, a Protestant named Szafraniec 

1573. ^g^g proposed as his successor ; but the choice fell upon Henry 
of Valois, duke of Anjou, brother to Charles IX. Henry suc- 
ceeding to his brother in France, unceremoniously quitted 

1575 Poland, and the Poles chose Stephen Bathori, prince of Tran- 
sylvania, a wise and brave monarch. They insisted on his 
marrying Anna Jagellon, daughter of Sigismund, to prevent 
any prince whom she might espouse claiming the crown. 
Stephen was by her induced to embrace the Catholic religion. 

1587 His successor was Sigismund Vasa, crown-prince of Sweden, 
descended on the mother's side from the Jagellons. 

Italy. 

'459 The haughty Caraffa (Paul IV.) was followed in the papal 
chair by the pious and zealous Pius IV. and V., and the good 
and well-intentioned Gregory XIII. The able, the vigorous, 
the resolute Montalto (Sixtus V.) next occupied the seat of 
St. Peter. This penetrating statesman saw clearly through 
the selfish policy of Philip II., whom he secretly wished no 
■ success ; and he, in his heart, admired the king of France 
and queen of England, against whom he discharged his spir- 
itual thunder. He established a rigorous police in the papal 
territories, and curbed the excesses of the lawless nobles. 
His strong measures against the great were followed up by 
his successor Aldobrandini (Clement VIII.) 

In Florence, Cosimo, the first grand duke, fortunate in 
other respects, was unhappy in his family. His daughter 
Lucretia was poisoned by her husband, a duke of Ferrara ; 
her sister Isabella was strangled by a prince of the Orsini, to 
whom she was married. The cardinal John of Medici was 
murdered by his brother Garcia, on account of a dispute at 
the chase, and Cosimo put his son Garcia to death with his 
own hand. Their mother died of grief His eldest daughter 




429 



CKAP m. TIMES OF PHILIP II. 431 

was, on account of improper love, poisoned by order of the 
grand duke. 

Francis, the second grand duke, also perished by poison, a. d 
A Florentine, named Buonaventuri, settled at Venice, had l^'^^ 
run away with Bianca, the daughter of the senator Capello. 
They came to Florence, where they lived in poverty. The 
^rand duke saw Bianca, admired, and got acquainted with 
her. Buonaventuri acquired wealth and honors. He loved 
a widow, and he employed his power to oppress her brothers; 
the grand duke reproving him, he replied with insolence and 
threats ; he was abandoned to the vengeance of those whom 
he ha,d injured, and he was murdered. Just at this time the 
grand duchess, daughter of the emperor Ferdinand, died. 
Francis married his beloved Bianca. Soon after, she took a 
hatred to her brother-in-law, the cardinal Ferdinand, and at- 
tempted to poison him at dinner. The cardinal, put perhaps 
on his guard, declined the proffered viands; — the grand duke, 
not aware of the truth, ate of the dish to remove his suspi- 
cions : — Bianca saw she was lost : — she also tasted of the dish, 158'' 
and died with her husband. 

The cardinal now became grand duke. He was a prince 
of great political prudence and sagacity, and his maxims were 
adopted by some leading courts. But he gave the reins with- 
out restraint to every sensual indulgence, and his example 
was followed by his subjects. Manufactures languished, mo- 
nopoly and companies checked trade ; but Florence was one 
of the handsomest, richest, and politest cities in Europe. 

The dukes of Savoy were proceeding with their character- 1559- 
istic activity. Emanuel Philibert, secured in his dominions 
by the treaty of Chateau Cambresis, turned all his thoughts 1^64. 
to depressing the nobles and increasing the ducal authority. 
He established a militia, built the citadel of Turin, and forti- 
fied Moiioinelian and Vercelle ; he created the manufacture 
of silk and the culture of olives ; he greatly increased the 
revenues by his wise measures, and was enabled to let the 
assembly of the states go out of use. His son Charles Emanuel 1584 
had all the talents of a great prince, and could accommodate 
himself to all circumstances. His fault was neglect of his 
word when it interfered with his interest. By exchange he 
obtained Saluzzo, and prepared the way for the acquisition 
of a part of Montferrat by his son. His reign was long and '^^ 
successful. 

Turkey. 

Selim II., on succeeding his father Suleiman, concluded a 1566. 
truce foi: twelve years with the emperor Maximilian. He 



432 HISTORY OF TUE WORLD. PART lit, 

turned his arms without success, against Persia, and then 
revived an old claim of the Egyptian sultans on Cyprus. 
f^ D- After an heroic resistance, the island was conquered by the 
1571- Turks, with the loss of 100,000 lives. A league had heer 
formed against Selim by the pope, the king of Spain, and the 
Venetians. Their fleet was too late to relieve Cyprus ; bui 
they encountered in the gulf of Lepanto the Turkish fleet 
which ravaged the coasts of Italy and Dalmatia, and gaineo 
over it a most signal victory. Don John of Austria command- 
ed the Christians ; but dissension prevented any solid advan 
tage being derived from it. Next year the Turks appeare' 
with a still greater fleet, and the Venetians made a sepu,nit» 
peace, by which they renounced all claim to Cyprus. Dot 
John had meantime conquered Tunis and Biserta, oi*t che\ 
were again recovered by the Turks. 

During the reigns of the three following sultans, who wen 
sunk in pleasure, the Turks made no acquisidoi.s of conse 
quence. Under Mohammed III., the grand v^izier managed 
to draw to himself all power, by abolis^iiii^ the places of the 
six viziers who sat in the divan. 



CHAP. IV 

TIMES OF THE THIRTY >%*^s' WAR. 

Germapy. 

1612. The archduke Mathias succor ded Rodolf in the empire. 
This prince had been hitherto iavorable to the Protestants, 
but he now resolved to curb tln^m. He had his cousin Ferdi- 
nand duke of Styria chosen Ins successor in Bohemia and 
Hungary, and Iip. made a tajiiiy compact with tin. :oMrt of 
Spain. The Protestants wfjie alarmed; the Bohemians and 
Hungarians had recourse to arms: the latter were easily 
quelled; but the tormer WJifc joined by the Protestants of 
Silesia, Moravia, and Upper Austria, and supported by an 
army of other German Protestants under count Mansfield. 
Thus began the Thirty Years' War. 

1619. Mathias died, ajid Ferdinand was raised to the imperial 
throne. Tlie Bohemians deposed him, and offered their crown 
to Frederic V., elector palatine, who, contrary to the advice 
of his father-in-law, James I. of England, accepted the fatal 
gift. He was supported by all the Protestant princes of the 
empire except the elector of Saxony, and by Betlilem Gabor, 
voivode of Transylvania, by a body of 8000 Dutch troops, and 



CriAP. IV TIMES OF THE THIRTY YEARS' WAR. 433 

by 2400 Encrlish volunteers. Ferdinand was aided by the 
king of Spain, by the archduke Albert, governor of the 
Netherlands, and the Catholic princes of the empire. Spinola 
Jed 24,000 men from the Low Countries, and ravaged the 
palatinate ; Frederic was defeated at Prague by the duke of a. d. 
Bavaria and general Baquoy. He and his adherents were 162a 
put to the ban of the empire; Bethlem Gabor was defeated 
in Hungary; count Tilly completed the conquest of the pala- 
tinate ; Frederic was degraded, and his dignity of elector 
conferred on the duke of Bavaria. 

A league was formed, at the head of which was Christian 1625 
IV. of Denmark, for the restoration of the palatine. But the 
troops of the league were unable to stand before the imperial- 
ists led by Tilly and Wallenstein, and Christian was forced 
to sue for peace. Ferdinand now thought the time was come 
for reducing the princes and prelates of the empire to the 
condition of" those of other countries. He resolved to begin 
with the Protestants; and he passed an edict ordering them 1629. 
to restore all the church lands, &c. that they had enjoyed 
since the peace of Passau. The Protestants remonstrated ; a 
diet was held at Ratisbon; the majority of the Catholic 
princes were for quieting them ; the spiritual electors second- 
ed the views of the emperor. The Protestants, to escape the 
meditated robbery, formed a secret alliance with Gustavus 
Adolphus, king of Sweden. . 

Gustavus was a prince of the highest military and civil 
talents : he was animated by a rational zeal for the Protest- 
ant religion, and he saw through the emperor's project of 
extending his dominion over the Baltic. Various other rea- 
sons combined to induce him to engage in war. The cardinal 
Richelieu, now minister in France, desirous to check the 
power of the house of Austria, engaged to give him an an- 
nual subsidy of 1,200,000 livrcs. Charles I. of England al- 
lowed 6000 men to be raised in the name of the marquis of 
Hamilton, to aid the king of Sweden, and numerous English 
and Scottish volunteers crowde<l to his standard. 

Gustavus entered Pomerania. The Protestant prnices 
were at first fearful of joining him ; but his well-timed decis- 
ion towards the elector of Brandenburg ended their hesitation. 
Being joined by the Saxons, he advanced towards licipzig, 
where Tilly lay, who advanced into the plain of Buitenfeld 
to meet him. Tlie numbers on each side were about 80,000 ; 
but Tilly's troops were all veterans. The Saxons, being raw 
troops, fled at the first onset : the skill of Gustavus and the 
valor of the Swedes gained a. complete victory. 163L 

The king of Sweden quickly made himself master of the 
37 



434 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IH. 

whole country from the Elbe to the Rhine. The elector of 
^ jj_ Saxony entered Bohemia, and took Prague. Tilly, in dis- 
1632. puting" the passage of the Lech with the Swedes, was killed. 
Gustavus took Augsburg, marched into Bavaria, and entered 
Munich. Wallenstein had meantime recovered Prague. The 
king of Sweden offered him battle near Niirnburg ; Wallen- 
stein declined it : a furious attack was for ten hours made on 
his entrenchments, and the Swedes were repulsed with great 
loss. Soon after, hearing that Wallenstein had transferred 
his camp to Liitzen, Gustavus, though it was the depth of 
winter, and the imperial forces greatly exceeded his in num- 
ber, resolved to seek and engage him. The battle which en- 
sued is one of the hardest fought recorded in history. It 
lasted from day-break till night: the king of Sweden fell 
in the midst of the conflict. Night alone prevented the vic- 
tory of the Swedes being" complete. 

The death of Gustavus cast a gloom over the Protestants ; 
they fell into factions : the Catholics were elated. But the 
Swedish regency (as Gustavus had left only one child, Chris- 
tina, of seven years) committed the management of the war 
to the chancellor Oxenstiern, a man of great ability, who, 
with the duke of Saxe-Weimar and generals Banier and 
Horn, prosecuted it with vigor. An event now occurred 
seemingly calculated to advance the Protestant cause. The 
emperor, whether justly or not is doubtful, suspecting the 
fidelity of Wallenstein, and fearing to deprive him of his 
command, had him secretly assassinated. But the loss of his 
genius was supplied by a large accession of Spanish and other 
troops, and by the junction of the dukes of Lorrain and Ba- 
1634. varia. The imperial troops were commanded by the king of 
Hungary ; the duke of Saxe-Weimar and general Horn came 
up with them near Nordlingen, and a bloody battle ended in 
the total defeat of the Swedes. 

The German princes now deserted the Swedes, and made 
1635 at Prague a treaty with the emperor, in which he receded 
from his former demands of the restitution of church property. 
The weight of the war now fell on the Swedes and French. 
France entered into an alliance with Holland, and war was 
declared against Spain. Richelieu raised five armies, one of 
which was sent into Germany, and placed under the duke of 
Saxe-Weimar. None of these armies was very successful. 
The imperial general Galas was opposed to the duke of 
Weimar, and they fought with alternate advantage. In Up- 
per Germany, the Swedes, under Banier, gave the imperial- 
1636. ists, under the elector of Saxony, a complete defeat at Wia- 
lock. 




435 



CHAP. IV. TIMES OF THE THIRTY YEARS' WAR. 437 

The emoeror Ferdinand II. died, and was succeedea by his ad. 
son, of the same name. The same line of policy was pursued, ^^^'^ 
and the war continued. The duke of Weimar laid siege to 1638 
Rainfeld ; an imperial army advanced to its relief, and was 
totally defeated by the duke : the town surrendered, as did 
soon after Brisac, and other places. 

While Weimar triumphed on the Rhine, Banier was equally 
successful in Pomerania ; he reduced several towns, and cut 
to pieces some of the imperial troops. 

In the beginning- of the next campaign, the duke and Ban- 1339 
ier took measures for penetrating into the h(tart of the Aus- 
trian dominions. Banier crossed the Elbe, beat every thing 
that opposed him, entered Saxony, and totally defeated the 
Saxon army at Chemnitz. He invaded Bohemia, laid the 
country under contribution, fell on the imperialists under 
general Hofskirk at Brandeiz, and pursued them to the walla 
of Prague. He then repassed the Elbe, defeated the impe- 
rialists at Glatz, and drove the Saxons throe times from their 
camp at Tirn. 

But the hopes of the Swedes were almost blighted by the 
loss of the duke of Saxe-Weimar, who died at this time, in 
his 36th year, by poison, as was strongly suspected. After a 
good deal of contest for his army, it was finally taken into 
the pay of the king of France, who thus became master of a 
great part of Alsatia and Brisgau. Under the command of 
the duke of Longueville it joined Banier at Erfurt; but the 
Swede found his genius cramped by their presence, and was 
no longer able to execute his bold and sudden projects. 

It was agreed to attack Piccolomini, the imperial general, 
in his camp at Saltzbu rg. This being found impracticable, 
the allies separated, and Banier attempted to penetrate into 
Franconia. Failing in this, he marched through Hesse into 
Lunenburg. Piccnlomini attempted to enter this duchy, but 
was unable to penetrate it : and as he marched for Franconia, 
he was attacked and nearly defeated by the Weimarian army. 

The emperor having convoked a diet at Ratisbon, Banier 1041 
formed a plan of surprising the city and dispersing the diet. 
Having joined the French army under Guebriant, they 
crossed tlie Danube on the ice, took 1500 of the imperial 
horse, and very nearly surprised the emperor himself. The 
approach of a thaw disconcerted their plans; but they threw 
five hundred shot into the town, an insult that enraged Ferdi- 
nand beyond measure. Attempts at a pacification were made 
at Hamburgh by the French and Swedish plenipotentiaries 
and one of the Aiilic counsellors ; but the emperor refused to 
ratify the convention. 
37* 



438 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

After th^ attempt on Ratisbon, the French and Swedes 
separated ; Banier marched through Bohemia, followed by 
Piccolomini and Gleen. He conducted his retreat in a most 
masterly manner to Zickau, where he was joined by Gue- 
briant, and they prepared to make head ag-ainst the imperial 
ists; but Banier took a fever in consequence of the fatigues 
he had undergone, and died at Halberstadt, in the 41st yeai 
of his age. Torstenson, another of the pupils of Gustavus, 
was appointed to succeed him, and he left Sweden with a 
large sum of money and a considerable reinforcement ; but, 
before his arrival, the allies under Guebriant had defeated 
Piccolomini at Wolfenbiittel. When Torstenson arrived the 
armies separated. 
A. D. The next spring, Guebriant totally defeated general Lam- 

1642. boy, and made himself master of the electorate of Cologne. 
Piccolomini marched against Torstenson, who had defeated 
the duke of Saxe-Lauenburg, and invested Leipzig. The 
archduke Leopold and Piccolomini advanced to the relief of 
it ; and Buitenfeld was again witness to the ttiumph of Swe- 
dish valor. 

The news of this defeat filled the imperial court with con- 
sternation. Leipzig surrendered; but Torstenson failed in 
his attempt on Friedburg. Guebriant was also successful on 
his side. 

1643. Conferences for a peace were now opened ; but the deatl 
of Louis XIIL and of Richelieu checked them : cardmal Maz 
arin, however, trod in the footsteps of his predecessor. Thf* 
arms of France were successful. While the negotiation? 
were pending, Torstenson marched into Holstein, to punish 
the hostility of the king of Denmark. Christian called on 
the emperor, who sent Galas thither ; but Galas feared to en- 
gage the Swedes. France then mediated a peace between 
Denmark and Sweden. The French, under Turenne, were 

. successful against the Bavarians ; the voivode of Transylvania 
invaded Hungary ; and the imperial army there under Gotz 
was utterly ruined. A similar fate befell that under Galas. 
645. Torstenson invaded Bohemia; a large army under Galas, 
Hasfeld, and others, was collected near Thabor. The Swe- 
dish general decoyed them from their advantageous position, 
and completely defeated them. Every place submitted ; the 
imperial family fled from Vienna : Brinn, however, held out 
against the Swedes. 

The Bavarians under Merci defeated Turenne at Marien- 
dal ; Turenne was reinforced by 8000 men, under the duke 
d'Enghien, and gave battle to the Bavarians on the plain of 
Nordlingen. which had been so fatal to the Swedes. Atler a 



CHAP. TV. TIMES OF THE THIRTY YEARS' WAR. 4,'59 

dreadful conflict, victory declared for the French, with the 
loss of 4000 men. The elector of Saxony, unable to check 
the progress of the Swedish general Kdningsmark, concluded 
a truce for six months. The latter joined Torstenson, who 
had, in spite of the arcliduke, carried his depredations to the 
gates of Vienna. They agreed to lay siege to Prague ; but 
the archduke secured that city against them ; and Torsten- 
8on, who was dreadfully afflicted with the gout, returning to 
Sweden, was succeeded by Vrangel, who ably sustained the 
glory of the Swedish arms. The French and Swedes were 
everywhere successful ; the elector of Bavaria and other 
princes were forced to make separate peaces with them ; the 
emperor alone was opposed to them ; and though the elector a. d. 
of Bavaria had again joined him, the victory of Zummerhau- 1648, 
sen, gained by Turenne and Vrangel, and the invasion of 
Bavaria and Bohemia, compelled him to think at last seriously 
of peace. 

Negotiations had long been going on at Osnaburg and 
Miinster. At last the Peace of Westphalia was signed 
at the latter place on the 24th Oct. 1648. By this celebrated 
treaty France obtained Alsatia, Brisac, Metz, Verdun, and 
other territories ; Sweden got Upper Pomerania, Stetin, the 
Isle of Riigen, Bremen, &c. with three votes at the diet ; 
compensation was made to the elector of Brandenburg and 
the duke of Mecklenburg for the loss of these territories ; the 
Upper Palatinate and the electoral rank remained with the 
duke of Bavaria ; Switzerland was declared independent of 
the empire ; the pacification of Passau was fully confirmed ; 
Lutherans and Catholics were' placed on the same footing ; 
the imperial chamber was to consist of twenty-six Catholic 
and twenty-four Protestant members ; six Protestants were 
admitted into the Aulic council ; an equal number of each 
party was to be summoned to the diet ; but in cases where it 
concerned either religion alone, only deputies of that religion 
should be called. 

France. 

Louis Xin. being a minor, his mother, Mary of Medici, a 161C 
weak, bigoted woman, was declared regent. She was gov- 
erned entirely by an Italian, named Concini, and his wife. 
Sully retired ; new maxims were adopted ; a double marriage 
and union with Spain was projected ; and the ruin of the 1613 
Protestants meditated. The nobility, headed by the prince 
of Conde, revolted ; they were appeased by gifts ; they re- 1616 
volted again, and were again appeased in the same way. 

Luines, the favorite of Louis, took advantage of his inflii- 



440 ITTSTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III 

ence over him to induce the young prince to seize the reins 
A.. D. of government. Louis ordered Concini to be arrested ; th6 
1617 captain of* the guards shot him, under pretext of resistance; 
his wife, the high-spirited Galligai, was condemned to death 
for sorcery and magic ; the regent was exiled to Blois. Lui- 
nes, from a page, was raised to the highest rank and offices 
in the state. A conspiracy, headed by the duke of Epernon 
released the queen-mother. Guided by the great Richelieu, 
she caballed against the court, which was obliged to enter 
into treaties advantageous to her and her party. She procured 
Richelieu a cardinal's hat, and a seat in the council. 
520. Louis, having united Beam to the crown, attempted, though 
the people were Protestants, to re-establish there the Catholic 
religion. The Huguenots were alarmed ; they assembled at 
Rochelle, and detennined to throw off their allegiance, and 
to form a republic. Luines, now constable, took arms. 

1621. Having seduced, by bribes and promises, the duke of Bouillon, 
and other of their leaders, he laid siege to Montauban with 
25,000 men. The place was gallantly defended by the mar- 
quis la Force, and Luines was forced to retire with disgrace. 
He died shortly afler wards, and was succeeded in his office 
of constable by the brave Lesdiguieres, who had renounced 
Calvini»n. The Protestants were led by the duke of Rohan 
and his brother Soubise. The latter was defeated by the 
king in person, who laid siege to Montpellier, which was de- 

1622. fended as bravely as Montauban. A peace was made, and the 
edict of Nantes confitnned. 

The haughty Richelieu became now prime minister. 
There were three parties whom he resolved to humble; the 
nobility of France, the Huguenots, and the house of Austria. 
To accomplish these objects, he, in spite of the pope and th' 
king of Spain, concluded a marriage between Charles prince 
of Wales and the king^s sister Henrietta, as also an alliance 
between the two crowns and the United Provinces. A war 
with Spain was the consequence, in which a French army, 
united with the Venetians and the duke of Savoy, took the 
625 Valteline, and restored it to the Grisons ; but Spinola reduced 
Breda, and the English failed in an attempt on Cadiz 

The Huguenots rebelled, and were now encouraged by 
England. The duke of Buckingham appeared before Ro- 
chelle with 7000 men ; but he had laid his measures so ill, 
that the citizens refused to admit him, and afler an ill-con- 
ducted attempt on the isle of Rhe, he returned home with 
disgrace. Richelieu laid siege to Rochelle ; and having run 
a mole across the harbor, compelled it to surrender. The 
duke of Rohan defended himself with vigor in Languedoc 




Death of Concini, 



441 



CHAP IV. TIMES OF THE THIRTY YEARS' WAR. 443 

but as England had made peace, he was forced to come to a. d. 
terms. The Protestants were continued in the enjoyment of 1629 
all that had been secured by the edict of Nantes, only they 
were deprived of their fortified towns. 

Having- humbled the Protestants at home, and thereby 
brought the whole kingdom, nobility and all, under the control 
of the crown, Richelieu resolved, in furtherance of his re- 
maining object, to aid the Protestants in Germany ; and he 
formed the secret alliance which we have already noticed.* 
After the treaty of Prague, he openly joined the Swedes. 
Meantime he ruled France with a rod of iron : the queen- 
mother was banished, her son Gaston duke of Orleans obliged 
to beg his life, and the marshals Montmorency and Merillas 
publicly executed. In defiance of all his enemies, Richelieu 
retained his power till his death, in 1642, at the moment 
when the arms of France and Sweden had completely hum- 
bled the pride of the house of Austria. The minister died 
on the 4th of December : his royal master followed him on 
the 14th of the ensuing May. Louis had been married to ^ 
Anne of Austria, daughter of Philip III. of Spain. 

Spain. 

The chief domestic incident that distinguished the reign 
of Philip III. was the expulsion of the Moriscoes. Impelled 
by the inquisition, and by the advice of his feeble and bigoted 
minister, the duke of Lerma, Philip issued an edict, com- 
manding all his Mohammedan subjects to quit the kingdom 1611 
within thirty days. In despair the Moors took arms: they 
were subdued, and a million of industrious subjects driven 
out of Spain, whose fate it is, to be to Europe a standing ex- 
ample of the evils of civil and religious despotism. During 
this reign, attempts were made to extend the Spanish power 
in Italy. 

Philip IV. and his minister Olivarez were both men of 1621 
more energy than their predecessors. It was determined to 
form the closest alliance with the emperor, and to attempt 
the reduction of the United Provinces, the truce with whom 
was expired. Notwithstanding, however, these magnificent 
projecij, the power of Spain continued still to decline in this 
reign. The Spanish infantry was cut to pieces on the plains ^^^* 
of Rocroi by the duke d'Enghien with an inferior force ; the 
Catalans rebelled ; the Portuguese threw off the yoke ; and 
£he independence of the Dutch was fully acknowledged. The 1643 
worm was at the heart of the power of Spain. 

* See p. 391. , 



444 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

Portugal. 

The Portug-uese had long been irritated by the despotism 
tlioy were subject to. On the revolt of tiie Catalans, a law 
was passod to compel the Portuo'iiese nobles to take arms for 
their reduction. A plot long formed now broke out. Olivarez 
had called away the Spanish garrison from Lisbon. The 
duchess of Mantua, styled the vice-queen, was driven away, 
and the grandson of the duke of Braganza, who had been de- 
prived of his right by Philip IT., was proclaimed king, under 
the title of John IV. All Portugal acknowledged him; ships 
were sent to the foreign settlements, and all expelled their 
A. i>. Spanish governors. Brazil was recovered from tlie Dutch, 
1640. and Portugal became once more independent. 

Itali/. 

The dominions of Spain in Northern Italy, were divided 
from those of the emperor by the Valteline and Venice. Be- 

1618. domar, the Spanish ambassador to the latter, formed, in con- 
junction with the governor of Milan and the viceroy of Na- 
ples, a nefarious project for murdering the senate, and getting 
possession of Venice; but the senate, discovering in time tlie 
atrocious plot, executed the majority of the conspirators. 

1620. Spain was more fortunate and less guilty in tiie Valteline, the 
Catholic inhabitants of which rose on and massacred their 
Protestant countrymen, and placed themselves under her pro- 
tection. 

The emperor and king of Spain each attempted to get the 
duchy of JVIantua, after the death of the duke without heirs; 

1630. ij^it Riciielieu entered Italy with an army, and obliged the 
emperor to grant the investiture to Charles Gonzaga, duke of 
Nevers. 

England— The Civil War. 

An eventful period now commences in England. A new 
1603 dynasty tills the throne, and the grand struggle begins be- 
tween liberty and absolute power. James VI. of Scotland, 
son of Mary, and descended from the elde.'^t daughter of Henry 
VII., was, on the doatii of Elizabeth, placed by the free-will 
and choice of the Engli?ii nation on her royal seat. This 
monarch was possessed of learning and abilities rather above 
the common rate; but lie was pedantic, mean, and pusillani- 
mous, sh;miefully subservient to unworthy favorites, and in 
his inglorious love of peace careless of the national honor. 
In the reign of this feeble prince, the English nation first 
learned to listen to the doctrines of the divine and ini'efeasi- 



* 




James YI. of Scotland and I. of EnglandL 



88 



445 



CHAP. IV. TIMES OF THE THIRTY YEARS' WAR. 447 

ble rights of kings ; then, too, the church began to depart 
from the principles of the reformers, and some of her divines 
to approximate in their doctrines to those of the church of 
Rome, so generally odious to the nation. Every thing, in 
short, w^as done, as it were, to prepare the materials of the 
coming conflagration. 

In the reign of James, the nation took greatly to trade and 
maritime enterprise, and increased rapidly in wealth, intelli- 
gence, and love of freedom. Public events w^ere few. The 
most remarkable was the Gunpowder Plot, a plan formed in 
the beginning of the king's reign by a few desperate Catho- 
lics to blow up the king and parliament, but fortunately dis- 
covered in time. The most laudable act of James's reign 
was the settlement and plantation of the north of Ireland. 

Charles I., of a harsh and arbitrary temper, endeavored to a. d. 
put into practice the speculative tenets of his father. He saw 1625 
not the state of the nation. English liberty had made great 
progress under the Plantagenets : circumstances enabled the 
Tudors nearly to crush it ; but with the growth of wealth, 
and the freedom of religious opinion, the spirit of the nation 
had recovered its vigor. Charles was suspected, on account 
of his marriage with Henrietta, sister to the king of France, 
a bigoted Catholic, and his partiality towards the professors of 
that religion, of a secret design against Protestantism. The 
Puritans, now a numerous party, were bitterly hostile to the 
church of England ; and the persecuting violence and silly 
superstition of archbishop Laud augmented their rancor. Re- 
fused the necessary supplies by the parliament, without giv- 
ing some security for liberty, the king had recourse to all the 
illegal modes of taxation employed by his predecessors. Ton- 
nage and poundage were levied ; all the oppressions of feudal- 
ism renewed ; for more than ten years no parliament assem- 
bled. An attempt being made to force Episcopacy upon the 1638 
Scots, that nation took arms, and entered into the solemn 
LEAGUE AND COVENANT. A dreadful rebellion broke out in IfrW 
Ireland, in which thousands of Protestants were barbarously 
massacred by the Catholics. The Long Parliament, which 
the king had assembled, advanced every day in their de- 
mands on him, and testified a spirit of determined hostility to 
the church. The impeachment, and illegal and unjust, though 
well-merited, condemnation of Strafford, the king's ablest and 
most obnoxious minister, showed him the spirit by which they 
were actuated. Charles, though reluctantly, still yielded to 
their demands ; but concession only produced further assump- 
tion. An invincible distrust of the king's sincerity, for which, 
indeed, there was abundant reason, haunted the minds of the 



448 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART m. 

A D. parliament, and prevented all accommodation. Both parties 

642. finally determined on the appeal to the sword. 

The king- was supported by a large proportion of the an- 
cient nobility and gentry of the realm, many of whom had 
at first been zealous in checking the royal excesses; but now, 
seeing the exorbitant demands of the commons, resolved to 
sustain the throne. The Catholics were naturally unanimous 
in his favor ; the western counties were in general well af 
fected to him. The chief strength of the parliament lay in 
the cities and great towns, and the eastern counties, and the 
lower orders were mostly on their side. It is idle to seek 
to extenuate the faults on either side ; to represent the one 
party as the champions of right and justice, the other as the 
inveterate foes of both. Each had much, indeed, to answer 
for: it was a struggle, the probable termination of which 
would be tyranny or anarchy ; yet impartiality will say, that 
the king was left no alternative, and that the balance of guilt 
was rather on the side of the parliament. Certainly, neither 
party is entitled to our unqualified approbation. But, in truth, 
the Civil War was inevitable ; it was the almost necessary 
result of the state of opinion then prevalent ; it was the tem- 
pest which was to purify the political atmosphere. 

. The royal standard was raised at Nottingham (Aug. 22). 

The first battle was fought at Edgehill. In the course of 
three years, numerous engagements occurred between the 
troops of the king and those of the parliament, now joined by 
the Scots. Lansdown Hill, Round way Down, Newbury, 
Nantwich, Marston Moor, and other places, witnessed the 
successes and reverses of either party. At length the king 
1645. received a final and fatal overthrow at Naseby (June 14), and 
unable any longer to make head, he fled for protection to the 
1647. camp of the Scots at Newark. He was by them dishonorably 
surrendered to the parliament. Afler a confinement of some 
time, he was, by means of the sect of the Independents, who 
were all-powerful in the army, and were, therefore, now the 

649. prevailing party, brought to trial, condemned, and beheaded ; 
a sentence, even if morally just, which it undoubtedly was 
not, flagrantly illegal ; a sentence that filled Europe with 
amazement ; and that, even if passed with purer motives than 
it was, by most of his judges, was an act of useless and per- 
nicious folly. A republic was now established. 

Holland. 

After the truce of 1609, the United Provinces were agi- 
tated by religious dissensions. The opinions of Calvin were 
maintained in all their rigor by the followers of Gomer : a 



CHAP. IV. TIMES OF THE THIRTY YEARS' WAR. 449 

milder system was advocated by Arminius. Prince Maurice 
sided with the former ; the patriotic functionary Barneveldt, 
who saw through the ambitious desig-ns of the prince, sup- 
ported the latter. The Gomerists prevailed ; the Arminian 
preachers were banished. Barneveldt, at the ag-e of 72, was 
broug-ht to the block, under the base and iniquitous charge of a. d. 
' vexing the church of God." But the people saw the object 1619 
of Maurice, and groans and murmurs, and the name of Bar- 
neveldt, attended him wherever he went. 

The Dutch were, during this period, usually allied with 
France against Spain. They extended their trade in the 
East and West Indies. In the former they founded Batavia, 
and laid the foundation of their future empire in those re- 
gions. 

Russia. 

That most extraordinary tyrant, Ivan IV. the Terrible, 159a 
was succeeded by his only remaining son, Fedor, with whom 
ended the house of Ruric. The boyars chose Boris, the 
brother of the empress. This prince governed well ; but an 
impostor appeared, pretending to be Dmitri, the eldest son of 
Ivan. After the death of Boris, the pseudo-Dmitri gained 
the throne, and his reign was praiseworthy. Suspected of a 
fondness for Polish manners, he was murdered by his boyars. 

Several false Dmitries appeared. At length, the nobles 
assembled to choose a sovereign. Three days they and tlie 
people fasted, and called upon God, and they then appointed 1613. 
Michaila Romanov, son of the archbishop Philocetus, and 
grandson, by his mother, of the Tzar Ivan, a boy of but fifteen 
years. The new Tzar spent his reign in restoring Russia to 
its former state of power and order. His son Alexei extended 
the relations of the empire. He first sent an embassy to 
China, and made Tobolsk the staple of the Chinese trade. 1645. 

Turkey and Persia. 

The Turkish sultans Ahmed, Mustafa, Osman, Moorad IV., 
and Ibrahim were, all but the ill-fated Osman and Moorad, sunk 
in pleasure and sensual indulgence, and took little part in the 
affairs of Europe. Moorad conquered Bagdad, and restrained 
the power of the janizaries, 

Persia, under the rule of Abbas the Great, attained to con- 
siderable power. This truly great monarch was victorious 1582 
in his wars against the Ottomans and the Usbegs; and he es- 
tablished a degree of tranquillity throughout his dominions, to 
which Persia had long been a stranger. After his death the 1627 
Persian power began to decline. 
38=^ 



450 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

CHAP. V. 

TIMES OF LOUIS XIV. 

France, to the Peace of the Pyrenees. 

A. D. Louis XIV. was a minor, his mother, Anne of Austria, re- 
648. gent, and cardinal Mazarin minister. De Retz (afterwards 
cardinal) coadjutor archbishop of Paris, a man of unprincipled 
ambition, endeavored to excite the nobility and people against 
the minister. The parliament of Paris joined him. The 
queen was insulted whenever she appeared. Mazarin or- 
dered the president and some of the most factious members of 
the parliament to be arrested. The populace rose, and barri- 

1577. cadoed the streets till the prisoners were released. Such was 
the commencement of the celebrated Fronde. 

The parliament of Paris proclaimed the cardinal a public 
enemy. The prince of Conti, the duke of Bouillon, and other 
nobles, joined them. Other parliaments followed their exam- 
ple. The great prince of Conde, at the request of the court, 
dispersed the undisciplined troops the parliament had raised. 
Matters were settled for a time ; but Conde, Conti, and others 
were afterwards, by the advice of de Retz, arrested at the 
council-table. Their partisans took arms : the duke of Or- 
leans, uncle to the king, set himself at their head. The car- 
dinal was obliged to fly to Cologne. By the intrigues of him 
and de Retz the duke of Bouillon and his brother Turenne 
were detached from the malcontents, and Mazarin returned, 

1651. escorted by 6000 men. 

Conde threw himself on the protection of Spain, and en- 
tered Paris at the head of a body of Spanish troops. Turenne 
led Louis within sight of his capital, and these two great gen- 
erals engaged each other in the suburb of St. Anfoine. The 
combat was long ; but the heroism of the daughter of the duke 
of Orleans, who ordered the guns of the Bastille to fire on the 
king's troops, decided it in favor of Conde. 

1653. At length the king dismissed Mazarin, and the nation re- 

1655. turned to its allegiance. Mazarin was, however, afterwards 
recalled, the nobles were punished, and the parliament hum- 
bled. 

The war with Spain had still continued ; it was now prose- 
cuted with vigor. Turenne and Conde were opposed to each 

1656. other. At Arras and Valenciennes the talents of the rivals 
were fully displayed. The balance was even between the 
two parties; but Mazarin formed an alliance with Cromwell; 




Oliver Cromwell. 



451 



CHAP. V. TIMES OF L0UI3 XIV. 453 

w'ho now governed Enoland, and the beam was turned. Dun- 
kirk was taken from Spain, and given to England. Ypres, 
Gravelines, and several other towns, surrendered to the arms a. » 
of France. Spain saw the necessity of peace. Mazarin and 1659 
Don Louis de Haro, the Spanish minister, met in the Isle of 
Pheasants, in the Pyrenees, and settled the terms of a peace. 
Philip agreed to pardon the Catalans, and renounce all claim 
to Alsace; Louis to pardon Conde. The succession of Juliers 
was secured to the duke of Neuburg, and the hifanta Maria 
Theresa was given in marriage to Louis. 

Mazarin died within less than a year after concluding the 1661 
peace of the Pyrenees; and Louis, now 21 years of age, took 
the reins of government into his own hands. 

Englnnd, to the Restoration. 

The parliament now governed England, and the strength 
the nation exhibited at this period is astonishing. Cromwell 
led an army into Ireland, and rapidly overran and contiuered 1649 
the whole kingdom. The Scots having proclaimed Charles 
II., Cromwell invaded and reduced that kingdom also. Charles 1660 
entered England with a Scottish army ; but the battle of Wor- 
cfcjster put an end to his hopes. Cromwell now dissolved the 
parliament, and governed alon(% under the title of Protector. 1653 
Success attended all his measures of Ibreign policy. He beat 
tlie Dutch, and forced their ships to strike their flag to the 
English. He took Jamaica from the Spaniards. Mazarin 
acknowledged him. The Venetians ami Swiss sought his 
friendship. The; northerti courts resjiected his power. But 
at home his government was rigorous in the extreme; and 
the despotism of C'hurles I. had never ventured on the tyr- 
anny and injustice exercised by this chief of the republic. 

On the death of Cromwell, his son Richard succeeded him 1658. 
in the protectorate; but he soon resigned his dignity. The 
eyes of the nation, wearied of change and tu rmoil, were turned 
to the ancient line of their princes. General Monk, who 
commanded in Scotland, marched to London; and the parlia- 
ment, reassembled under his protection, restored Charles II. 1660. 
to the throne of his ancestors. 

Wars till the Peace of Nimeguen. 

The Dtitch had, on the death of William II. of Orange, 157(1 
abolished the dignity of stadtholder. The family of Orange 
being connected with the royal family of England, Charles II. 
wished to restore his nephew, William III., to the power of 
his ancestors, and he also hoped to make money by a war. 
The people of England were jealous of the commercial wealth 



454 HISTORY OF THE WORLD, PART III. 

A D. of Holland. War was, therefore, declared under false pre. 

1664. texts. Squadrons were sent out to Africa and America. De 
Witt, pensionary of Holland, who directed the republic, fore- 
seeing the designs of England, had formed an alliance with 
France. A large fleet was collected under admiral Opdam. 

1665. It^ engaged the English fleet under the duke of York, but 
was totally defeated. Louis XIV. and the king of Denmark 
now came forward to aid the Dutch. The following year 
two most desperate sea-fights took place : the first lasted four 
days, and the fleets separated, leaving victory undecided. 
The next month the Dutch were defeated. Both parties 
growing weary of the war, negotiations were opened at 
Breda ; but de Witt refused to consent to a suspension of hos- 
tilities. A Dutch fleet sailed up the Thames, and burned sev- 

1667. eral ships of war at Chatham ; and de Ruyter, the Dutch ad- 
miral, rode triumphant in the Channel. The treaty of Breda 
was now concluded, in which England receded from some of 
her demands. She retained New-York, which she had con- 
quered ; she ceded her settlement at Surinam. 

Louis XIV. now commenced his career of war, the struggle 
between absolute monarchy and constitutional liberty. On 
the death of Philip IV. of Spain, who left only one son, 

1665. Charles, a sickly infant, Louis, who, though at his marriage 
with the infanta he had renounced all title to the succession 
of any part of the Spanish dominions, still secretly cherished 
the hope of obtaining them, had retracted the renunciation, 
and even laid claim, in right of his wife, to the immediate 
possession of the duchy of Brabant. This claim could only 
be decided by arms. At the head of 40,000 men Louis en- 

1667. tered Flanders. Tournay, Douay, Lisle, and other towns sur- 
rendered. Another campaign, it was feared, would make 
him master of the Low Countries. All Europe was alarmed. 
A triple alliance was formed between England, Holland, and 

1668 Sweden, to oblige Louis to adhere to, and Spain to accept of, 
the terms offered by the former at the end of the first cam- 
paign. France and Spain were equally displeased at this 
treaty, but agreed to treat; and a treaty was negotiated at 
Aix-la-Chapelle, by which Spain allowed Louis to retain the 
towns he had taken, and which he had had strongly fortified 
by the great Vauban. By a treaty with Portugal at this time, 
Spain acknowledged the independence of that crown. 

Louis was bent on revenge on Holland. A secret treaty 

670. WQ-s made with the king of England, whom Louis engaged to 
assist in his project of establishing popery and despotism in 
that country, if he aided in subduing the United Provinces ; 
and Louis prepared to invade the States. As he could not 



CHAP. V. TIMES OF LOUIS XIV. 455 

obtain a passage through the Spanish provinces, he, contrary 
to the faith of treaties, seized on the duchy of Lorrain. 
Charles, who was now become the pensioner of France, ob- 
tained under false pretexts a large grant from his parliament; 
and a base and unsuccessful attempt was made on the Dutch 
Smyrna fleet, while the treaty subsisted with the States. At a. d 
length both monarchs, under the most frivolous pretences, do- 1672 
clared war against the United Provinces. The combined 
fleets of France and England were more than 100 sail. A 
French army of 120,000 men appeared on the frontiers. The 
States put forth all their energies. The command of the 
irmy was intrusted to William III. of Orange, now 23 years 
of age. De Witt and de Ruyter attended to the navy. The 
latter put to sea with 90 sail of large, and 40 of small vessels, 
to take vengeance on the English for their perfidious attempt 
on the Smyrna fleet. The English had been joined by the 
French ; and their combined force was 120 sail, when de 
Ruyter came in sight of them in Southwold Bay. A despe- 
rate engagement terminated in no decisive advantage to 
either side. 

Louis divided his army into three bodies, under Tarenne, 
Conde and Chamilli, and Luxemburg : the bishop of Miinster 
and the elector of Cologne were his allies. Several towns 
surrendered. He passed the Rhine. Nimeguen and Utrecht 
opened their gates. All the provinces but Holland and Zea- 
land submitted. Holland opened its sluices, and inundated 
the country ; but the councjls of the state were distracted by 
the Orange and republican parties. Offers were made to 
surrender Maestricht and all the frontier towns beyond the 
limits of the seven provinces, and to pay the expenses of the 
war. They were haughtily rejected. The prince of Orange 
was declared stadtholder, and in a moment of popular frenzy 
the great and good de Witt and his brother were torn to 
pieces. It was resolved never to submit : ships were even 
prepared to carry these modern Phocseans to the East Indies, 
if unable to retain their country and liberty. 

The combined fleets, with an army on board, approached 1673 
the coast of Holland. In a manner almost miraculous they 
were carried out to sea, and afterwards prevented landing 
their forces by violent storms. Those who regarded this as 
the interference of providence cannot justly be accused of su- 
perstition. Meanwhile, Lou is had returned to Versailles. The 
emperor and the elector of Brandenburg had shown a dispo- 
sition to assist the States. The king of Spain had sent them 
some forces, and the aspect of their affairs was brightening 

The Dutch fleet, under van Tromp and de Ruyter, engaged 



456 HISTORY OF the world. part ni 

the combined French and English fleets under prince Rupert, 
in three actions, off the coast of Holland. They were, as 
usual, long and obstinately fought, and, as usual, undecisive. 
The French took Maestricht. The prince of Orange re- 
took Naerden. The imperialists under Montecuculi having 
vamly attempted the passage of the Rhine, laid siege to Bonn. 
The prince of Orange joined them. Bonn surrendered. The 
greater part of the electorate of Cologne was conquered ; and 
the communication being thus cut off between France and 
the United Provinces, Louis was obliged to recall his forces 
and abandon his conquests. A congress held at Cologne 
could settle nothing. The house of Austria was terrified at 
the projects of Louis; the emperor and the king of Spain 
signed a treaty with the Dutch, and Spain declared war. 
A. D. Charles, unable to get supplies from his parliament, made 

1674. peace with Holland. Louis also was desirous of peace; but 
the allies were eager for war. Charles in vain tried to me- 
diate. In the next campaign Louis exerted great energy. 
At the head of one of his armies he conquered Franche- 
Comte. A furious but indecisive battle was fought at 
Seneffe in Brabant, between Turenne and the prince of Or- 
ange. The prince took Grave, the last town the French held 
in the United Provinces. Turenne was successfbl on the 
side of Germany : he overran the Palatinate ; but his laurels 
were tarnished by the horrible cruelties and excesses com- 
mitted by his troops. 

1675. Louis again vainly sought peaee. In the next campaign 
nothing of importance took place in Flanders. In Germany 
Turenne was killed by a cannon-ball, and the French army 
forced to recross the Rhine. 

^76. The next year the French were successful in Flanders, 
taking Conde and Bouchain. The imperialists took Philips- 
burg. The French fleet defeated the combined Dutch and 
Spanish fleets in the Mediterranean, and rode triumphant in 
that sea. 

»677 The Dutch were now as anxious for peace as Louis ; but 
the prince of Orange wishing to continue the war, another 
campaign was opened. Louis took Valenciennes, Cambray, 
and St. Omer, and defeated the prince at Mount Cassal, when 
he attempted the relief of this last town. The French arms 
under Crequi and other generals were successful on the 
Rhine. Spain was torn by factions. A congress had been 
sitting all this while at Nimeguen, and a conditional treaty 
was entered into between France and the Dutch. The prince 
of Orange mai ried in this year the daughter of the duke oi 
York 




Charles II. of EnglancL 



39 



467 



kAIAV. V. . TIMES OF LOUIS XIV. 459 

In the following- year, Louis took Ghent and Ypres. The a. d 
Dutch were terrified, and signed a separate peace at Nime- ^^''^ 
guen. The allies clamored : the prince of Orange sought to 
break it by an attack on a French army ; but all were finally 
obliged to accede to it. By this treaty Louis retained Franche- 
Comte and Cambray, Tourney, Valenciennes, and several 
other towns in the Low Countries, and his power was now 
by far the most formidable in Europe. 

England, to the Revolution. 

The object of Charles IL was to establish absolute power 
and popery ; and the people, recovering from their delirium 
of loyalty, gradually became jealous and suspicious of him. 
Episcopacy having been restored, an iniquitous attempt was 1668. 
made to force it on Scotland. The detestable barbarity of 
the government was opposed by the fierce bigotry and fanati- 
cism of the people, and horrible cruelties were exercised to 
subdue them. The awakened fears and bigotry of the nation 
caused a Popish Plot to be got up in England, and several 1678. 
innocent Catholics were judicially murdered. The jealousy 
of the commons against the designs of the court was ever alive, 
and it drove them into some measures not compatible with 
justice and policy. It was attempted to exclude the duke of 
York, a known papist, from the crown, and the Test Act was 
passed. But the court, by taking advantage of circumstances, 
particularly of the Ryehouse Plot, and secretly supplied with 
money by Louis, advanced rapidly in the career of despotism, 
or rather approached nearer the precipice over which it was 
to be whirled. Russel and Sidney were publicly executed ; 1683 
passive obedience was preached; justice was perverted. 

In this state of affairs the king died. He expired in the 1685. 
faith of the church of Rome, which he had long secretly pro- 
fessed. It was indeed, morally speaking, a matter of little 
importance what the religious sentiments were of such a 
heartless, selfish profligate. It is an instance of the effect 
of popular manners and showy qualities on the minds of the 
vulgar, that this prince, the mean pensioner of France, the 
conspirer against the religion and liberties of his people, every 
one of whose acts tended to disgrace the nation, was, like 
Edward IV. and Henry VIII., instead of being detested, rather 
a favorite with the country at large. 

James II., in his fanatic zeal for popery, would hearken to 
no remonstrance of prudence. The duke of Monmouth, a 
natural son of the late king, took up arms in the west of 
England ; but was defeated, and he and numbers of his ad- 
herents executed by order of the relentless tyrant. The king 



460 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TTT. 

proceeded in his design of changing the relig, :j of the coun- 
try, arid attempted to place Papists in the chu Ci< and univer- 
sities. Having ordered his declaration of indulgence to be 
read in the pulpit, the primate and six bishops petitioned 
against it. They w^ere committed to the Tow^r, tried, and 
acquitted. The joy of the people at this event ^s no warn- 
ing to the king. The Whigs and Tories (the parties into 
which the nation was now divided) coalesced o^ he birth of 
a young prince, and invited over the prince of (Grange to de- 
liver the nation. The prince embarked with a large force. 
A. D. The troops of James deserted him. He and his queen and 
688. son fled to France. The throne was declared vacant, and the 
prince and princess of Orange proclaimed king and queen of 
England. The Bill of Rights, and, at a subsequent period, 
the Act of Settlement, were passed for the security of the 
nation. 

Such was the resolution of 1688, justly called Glorious ; 
the noblest instance history presents of the salutary and ir- 
resistible power of public opinion, directed by wisdom, and 
aiming at just and worthy ends. It is an event to which Eng- 
land, as long as her name and her language exist, must look 
back with pride and gratitude; it stands a noble monument 
of bloodless resistance, amidst the scenes of cruelty, slaugh- 
ter, and oppression which deform the domains of history. Be- 
fore its radiance, absolute power, passive obedience, and their 
kindred doctrines, fled like spectres of the night, to conceal 
themselves from human view. 

Wars to the Peace of Ryswick. 

After the peace of Nimeguen, Louis proceeded to act in the 
most arbitrary and insolent manner. He treacherously made 
himself master of Strasburg, and demanded Alost from the 

1683. Spaniards. The Turks had at this time invaded Hungary, and 
occupied the imperial arms. Joined by the Hungarian malcon- 
tents, who had invited them, the Turkish army advanced towards 
Vienna. The vizier laid siege to that city ; but the German 
princes collected their forces, and, under the command of 

1684. John Sobieski, king of Poland, came to its relief The Turks 
were seized with a panic, and fled ; and they were finally 
driven out of Hungary. Louis, who had suspended his ope- 
rations during the siege of Vienna, now reduced Luxemburg, 
Courtray, and Dixmund. The emperor and Spain were forced 
to conclude a truce with him. He was now at the height of 
his power : he had a most extensive marine ; had chastised 
the pirate states of Africa, trampled on the power and inde- 
pendence of Genoa, and insulted the dignity of the pope. In 



CHAP.V. TIMES OF LOUIS XIV. 461 

the ignorance of his big-otry, he revoked the edict of Nantz, a. d. 
treated his Protestant subjects with all the injustice and cru- 16B5 
elty that blind fanaticism could dictate, and thereby lost to 
France thousands of industrious citizens, who augmented the 
wealth and the armies of his enemies. 

A league was formed at Augsburg, to restrain the en- 1687 
croachments of France. Spain and Holland joined it, as also 
did Denmark, Sweden, and Savoy, and, finally, England, now 
governed by William. The emperor Leopold was at the head 
of the confederacy. Louis assembled two large armies in 1689 
Flanders ; a third was opposed to the Spaniards in Catalonia ; 
another entered and ravaged the palatinate in a most barbar- 
ous and fiendish manner, a conduct almost peculiar to the 
French among civilized nations. But this detestable policy 
did not avail Louis : his troops were unsuccessful on all sides ; 
and he lost Mentz and Bonn. In the next campaign he was 1690. 
more fortunate : the mareschal de Catinat reduced all Savoy ; 
Luxemburg and Boufflers defeated the allies at Fleurus, and 
Catalonia was thrown into confusion. The Turks were suc- 
cessful in Hungary. The French fleet defeated the com- 
bined Dutch and English off Beachy-head. The following 1691. 
year, though Louis took Mons, he and his allies the Turks, 
made little progress. Louis, the ensuing spring, took Na- 
mur; and the king of England made an unsuccessful attack, 
on the French army at Steenkirk; Catinat was driven back, 1692 
and the duke of Savoy ravaged Dauphine. Waradin was 
taken from the Turks. The French fleet was defeated off 
La Hogue. Next year, Luxemburg defeated, at Landen, the 1693. 
allies, commanded by the king of England ; and Catinat, those 
under the duke of Savoy, at the river Cisola. A French 
squadron dispersed and captured several ships of the Smyrna 
fleet. Meanwhile, France was internally suffering the effects 
of war. Agriculture and commerce languished ; and, in the 
next campaign, nothing of importance was done. In the cam- 
paign of 1695, William recovered Namur. In the following, 1696. 
no signal event occurred. All parties were now tired of war. 
A congress was opened at Ryswick, near Delft, and a treaty 1697. 
concluded, by which Louis made great concessions, acknow- 
ledging William III., and restoring to Spain almost all the 
places that had been united to France, and giving back Lor- 
rain and Bar to their native princes. The gallant sultan, 
Mustafa II., was totally defeated at Zenta, in Hungary, by 1699 
prince Eugene of Savoy, and forced to conclude a peace at 
Carlo witz. Tranquillity was thus for a time restored. 



39* 



462 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART 11*, 

England. 

A. D. The cause of James was supported in Scotland by the brave 
1689. but cruel viscount Dundee. At the battle of Killicranky, he 
was killed in the midst of victory. The Presbyterian religion 
was re-established in that kingdom. James himself passing 
over to Ireland, the Catholics armed in his favor. They were 
repulsed in their attempt on Derry, and William soon landed 
690. in Ireland, and gained the decisive battle of the Boyne. James 
fled to France. William invested Limerick without success; 
but the following year, his general, de Ginckel, defeated the 
1691. Irish at Aughrim, took Athlone, and Limerick surrendered 
on conditions which were not subsequently very rigidly ad- 
hered to by the victorious party. 

The government of William III., the ablest prince of his 
age, and one of the best and greatest monarch s that have sat 
Oil the English throne, was now firmly established with tlie 
consent and support of the majority of the British nation, 
tliough a strong faction still clung to the cause of the banished 
yrant. 

Spanish Succession. 

Charles II. of Spain had no children, and his health was 
declining. The claimants of the crown were Louis XIV. 
and the dauphin, and the emperor and the king of the Ro- 
mans. Both Louis and Leopold were equally related to 
Charles: they were grandsons of Philip III., and married to 
daughters of Philip IV. A third competitor was the electoral 
prince of Bavaria. Right of birth was with the Bourbons, as 
the king and the dauphin were descended from the eldest in- 
fantas; but the imperial family pleaded the renunciations 
made by Louis XIII. and XIV., and, as the descendants of 
Maximilian, the right of male representation. The electoral 
prince claimed in right of his mother, the only surviving child 
of the emperor Leopold by the infimta Margaret, second 
daughter of Philip IV., who had declared her descendants 
heir to the crown, in preference to those of his eldest daugh- 
ter. It was for the interest of Eurof)e that the Bavarian prince 
should succeed ; but he was unable to contend with his rivals. 
No power was inclined for war. Louis and Leopold secretly 
intrigued at Madrid. The body of the Spanish nation was 
for the former; the queen and her party for the emperor. 
698. Meantime France, England, and Holland secretly signed a 
treaty of partition, to give Spain, America, and the Nether- 
lands to the electoral prince ; Naples, Sicily, some places in 




Queen Anne, of England. 



463 



CHAP. V. TIMES OF LOUIS XIV. 40)5 

Italy and Spain to the dauphin ; and the duchy of Milan to 
Charles, the emperor's second son. 

Tiiis treaty coming- to the knowledg-e of the court of Spain, 
filled it with rag'e. The king- made a will in favor of the 
electoral prince. England and Holland were well pleased a. d. 
at this; but the sudden death of that prince revived their 1*>99 
apprehensions. A second treaty of partition was secretly 
sig-ned by the same powers, g"iving the electoral prince's part 1700 
to the archduke Charles, and Milan to the duke of Lorrain, 
who was to cede his territories to the dauphin ; and care was 
taken to prevent, in any case, the crown of Spain being united 
to that of France or the empire. 

The emperor rejected the treaty of partition, and the king- 
of Spain nominated the archduke his heir. The nobles and 
clerg-y of Spain were for the Bourbons. The archbishop of 
Toledo prevailed on the king- to write to consult the pope ; 
and Innocent XIT,, aware tha.t the liberties of Italy depended 
on restraining- the imperial power, required him to prefer the 
family of Bourbon. A new will was secretly made, in which 1701 
the duke of Anjou, second son of the dauphin, was declared 
heir. Charles died soon afterwards, and Louis, after some 
hesitation, accepting- the succession, the young king was 
crowned, under the title of Philip V. ; and England and Hol- 
land found it necessary to acknowledge him. Leopold dis- 
puted his title, and sent an army into Italy, to support his 
claim to Milan. He met there with signal success : the Eng- 
lish and Dutch, after some fruitless negotiations with France, 
resolved to support him. He gained the elector of Branden- 
burg by creating him king of Prussia ; and the king of Den- 
mark was ready to aid him. 

A treaty, called the Grand Alliance, was signed by the 
plenipotentiaries of the emperor, the States General, .and the 
king of England. The avowed objects of it were, to procure 
the emperor satisfaction respecting the Spanish succession, 
to prevent the union of the French and Spanish monarchies, 
&c. Neither England nor Holland would agree to support 
the emperor in his demand of all the Spanish dominions. 

On the death of William III., his successor, queen Anne, nos 
declared her resolution to adhere to the Grand Alliance, and 
war was declared by the three powers against France. In 
the first campaign, the French defeated the imperialists on 
the Upper Rhine ; but the earl of Marlborough made great 
progress in Flanders, and the combined fleets of England and 
Holland captured the Spanish galleons, and took and burned 
a Frernch fleet in Vigo bay. The duke of Savoy, long irreso- no? 
lute, at length joined the allies, as did also the king of Por 



466 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PARI IIL 

tug-al. The electorof Bavaria and Marsha] Villars defeated 
the imperialists at Hochstadt. The French had the advantage 
in Italy and Alsace. In Flanders, the genius of Marlborough 
kept them in check. The emperor now directed his son 
Charles to assume the title of king of Spain. 
D, The emperor was almost besieged in his capital by the 
70i. Hungarian malcontents on one side, and the French and 
Bavarians on the other. Marlborough, as the United Prov- 
inces were now secured, resolved to march into Germany, to 
the aid of Leopold. He crossed the Rhine at Coblentz, and 
meeting prince Eugene at Mondelsheim, a junction was 
agreed on between the allies and the imperial troops under 
the duke of Baden. They forced the intrenchments of the 
elector of Bavaria at Donawert. The elector was reinforced 
by 30.000 French under Tallard: prince Eugene joined 
Marlborough with 20,000. Each army consisted of about 
60,000 men, when they engaged (Aug. 13) near the village 
of Blenheim, on the banks of the Danube. The victory of 
the allies was signal; 30,000 French and Bavarians were 
killed, wounded, and taken : the loss of the allies was 5000 
killed, and 7000 wounded. All Bavaria was overrun; the 
victors crossed the Rhine, and entered Alsace. ■ In Italy and 
Spain the advantage was on the side of the French ; but the 
important fortress of Gibraltar was taken by the English. 

1705. Next year the French maintained their superiority in Italy; 
but in Spain almost the whole of Valencia and Catalonia sub- 
mitted to Charles. In Flanders Marlborough was unable to 
effect any thing. Leopold died this year. 

1706. liOuis now resolved to strain every nerve to maintain an 
army in Germany, support his grandson in Spain, strip the 
duke of Savoy of his dominions, and act offensively in Flan- 
ders. The ardor of Villeroy in the latter country destroyed 
all his projects: this general, though with a superior force, 
gave battle to Marlborough at Ramillies, and was defeated, 
with the loss of 7000 killed, and 6000 prisoners. All Brabant, 
and neai ly all Spanish Flanders, submitted to the conquerors. 
In Italy the French, under the duke of Orleans, were attacked 
and driven out of their camp before Turin, by prince Eugene ; 
and the house of Bourbon in consequence lost all the territo- 
ries it claimed in Italy. In Spain the French and Spaniards 
were repulsed in their attack on Barcelona, and the English 
and Portuguese entered Madrid, which they were, however, 
unable to retain. Most advantageous terms were now offered 
by Louis to the allies; but the self-interest of Marlborough, 
Eugene, and the pensionary Heinsius, prevented their being 




Louis XIV. accepting the Crown of Spain for his Grandson, Philip V. 

467 



CHAP. V. TIMES OF LOUIS XIV. 469 

accepted, though without any farther effusion of blood all the 
objects of the grand alliance might now be attained. 

Louis collected all his energies : his troops being obliged a d 
to evacuate Milan, Mantua, and Modena, he sent them to the 1''07 
aid of his grandson ; and (April 26) the duke of Berwick 
(a natural son of James 11.) gained a most decisive victory 
over the confederates, under the earl of Galway and the 
marquis las Minas, at Almanza. The duke of Orleans re- 
duced Valencia and part of Aragon. Prince Eugene and 
the duke of Savoy entered France and laid siege to Toulon, 
but were forced to abandon the enterprise. Enraged by a 1708. 
futile attempt of Louis in favor of the son of James IL, the 
English parliament adopted most vigorous measures for con- 
tinuing the war. Marlborough passed over to Flanders, where 
the French had taken Ghent and Bruges ; and though not 
yet joined by Eugene, he crossed the Scheld, and came up 
with the French army, comma nded by the duke of Vendome, 
at Oudenarde. The battle was obstinate, and lasted till 
night, during which the French fled, leaving the glory of the 
victory with the allies. Prince Eugene now formed the 
siege of and took Lisle; and Ghent and Bruges were recov- 
ered. The French had rather the advantage in Spain and 
Italy ; but Sardinia and Minorca surrendered to the English 
admiral Leake. 

Again Louis offered the most honorable and advantageous 1709. 
terms to the allies : he was willing to cede all the Spanish 
dominions to Charles, to give back to the emperor all his 
conquests on the Upper Rhine, to acknowledge the succession 
established in England, the king of Prussia, &c. — in a word, 
to do every thing that justice could possibly demand. Again 
the passions and selfishness of those three above-named per- 
sons retarded the repose of Europe, The French monarch 
appealed to his people, and, though wasted by famine, they 
resolved on new efforts. 

The allied army, 100,000 stronsr, was formed on the plains 
of Lisle, Villars, who commanded the French forces, covered 
Douay and Arras. Eugene and Marlborough, deeming it 
imprudent to attack him, drew off, and sat down before Tour- 
nay. That strong city was reduced. They invested Mons. 
Villars encamped within a league of it, at Malplaquet. The 
allies attacked him (Sept, 11.) in the strong position he occu- 
pied: the contest was obstinate and bloody: the allies re- 
mained masters of the field, with the loss of 15,000 men ; the 
PVench retreated, with the loss of 10,000, the armies having 
been of nearly equal strength. Mons surrendered. liittJe 
of importance was done elsewhere. Louis again applied for 1710. 
40 



470 HISTORY OF THE WORLD, PART III. 

peace, and a conference was appointed at Gertruydenbiirg". 
He was willing to make still farther concessions; but the in- 
solence and extravagance of the demands of the States, to 
whom the negotiation was committed, were such, that it was 
not possible for him with any honor to accede to them. Eu- 
gene and Marlborough reduced Douay, and other towns. 
Villars declined a battle. In Spain, Philip and Charles en- 
gaged each other at Almenara and Saragossa, and Charles 
was victorious in each conflict. He entered Madrid. More 
troops arriving from France, the Spanish nobles made every 
effort for Philip. Vendome took the command, and forced 
the English general Stanhope to surrender, with 5000 men, 
at Brihuega, but was himself beatten at Villa Viciosa by count 
Staremburg, with a far inferior force. 

A great portion of the English nation was now grown tired 
of the expenses of the war ; a change had taken place in its 
A. D. ministry, the Tories having come into power; the emperor 
•'''ll- Joseph was dead, and his brother Charles had succeeded him 
in the empire. As by the grand alliance the imperial and 
Spanish crowns could not be held by the same person, a great 
difficulty in the way of adjustment was now removed. After 
an inactive campaign, conferences for peace were opened at 
Utrecht, where the treaties were at last signed, on the 31st 
of March, 1713, by the plenipotentiaries of France, England, 
Portugal, the United Provinces, Prussia, and Savoy ; the em- 
peror and the king of Spain refusing to be included. 

It was stipulated that Philip should renounce all title to the 
crown of France, and the dukes of Berri and Orleans to thai 
of Spain; that in case of the failure of male issue of Philip, 
the duke of Savoy should succeed to the crown of Spain ; 
that Naples, Milan, and the Spanish territories on the Tuscan 
coast should be ceded to the house of Austria, and that house 
secured in the pa^isession of the Spanish Netherlands ; ■ that 
the Rhine should be ,he boundary between France and Ger- 
many, &-C. &:.c. The acquisitions of England were chiefly in 
America : she was to retain Gibraltar and Minorca, to have 
the Asiento or contract for supplying the Spanish settlements 
with negroes for thirty years ; and Louis acknowledged the 
settlement of the English throne. But the real gain was on 
the side of Louis, who obtained all that the war had been en- 
gaged in to prevent his acquiring. This treaty brought well- 
merited odium on the English ministry. 
1714 The following year the emperor made peace at Rastadt, on 
less favorable terms than were offered him at Utrecht. The 
king of Spain also acceded to the pacification, and Europe 
rested from war. 



CHAT V. TIMES OF LOUIS XIV. 471 

In this year died Louis XIV., the disturber of Europe for 
nearly half a century. His grandson and successor being a 
minor, the duke of Orleans was appointed regent. 

North of Europe — Peter the Great — Charles XIL 

The people of Denmark, to escape the tyranny of the no- a. j,. 
bles, solemnly surrendered their liberties to Frederick III., in 1670 
1661. His successor. Christian V., made war on Charles 
XI. of Sweden, whose father, Charles X., had been called to 
the tlirone, on the abdication of Christina, daughter of Gusta- 
vus Adolphus. Charles XIL, a minor, succeeded his father, 1697 
Charles XL 

Alexei of Russia was followed by his son Theodore, who, 
dying early, appointed his half-brother Peter to succeed; but 1682 
his sister Sophia, aided by the Strelitzes, attempted to secure 
the power for herself Peter being but ten years of age, she 
made his imbecile brother Ivan tsar, and associated Peter 
with him. At the age of seventeen Peter succeeded in sub- 
verting the power of Sophia, and obtained the full royal dig- 
nity and influence. He defeated the Turks at Azoph, which 1696. 
opened to him the Black Sea. He formed vast plans for the 
improvement of his empire, and he spent a year in Holland 
and England, making himself acquainted with the useful arts. 

Eager to distinguish himself in war, he joined the kings of noi. 
Poland and Denmark against the young king of Sweden. 
Charles, though a youth, showed himself a hero. He made 
an alliance with Holland and England, landed in Denmark, 
laid siege to Copenhagen, and forced the king to a peace. 
The Russians had, meantime, besieged Narva with 80,000 
men. Charles hasted thither with 10,000, forced their in- 
trenchments, killed 18,000, and took 30,000 prisoners. Next 
year he defeated the Poles and Saxons on the Duna, and 1702L 
overran Livonia, Courland, and Lithuania. 

Augustus elector of Saxony was king of Poland : his new 
subjects were dissatisfied with him. Charles formed the de- 
sign of dethroning him by their means. He defeated him at 
Clissau, between Warsaw and Cracow, and this last city sur- 
rendered. Augustus engaged him again at Pultausk, and 
was again defeated. He fled to Thorn. The throne was 1703 
pronounced vacant by the diet, in which the intrigues of 
Charles prevailed, and Stanislaus Leczinzky was chosen king. 1704. 

Peter, having retaken Narva, sent 60,000 men into Poland : 
a Saxon army entered it under general Schalemburg; but 
Charles soon drove the Russians out of the country, and his 
general Renschild defeated Schalemburg at Frauenstadt with 1706. 
great slaughter. The king of Sweden entered and overran 



472 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART ITI. 

A. D. Saxony, and forced Augustus to recognize Stanislaus. Having 

1707. made the emperor comply with his demands, Charles re- 
turned to Poland, with 40,000 men. He attempted, though 
it was winter, to march to Moscow; but the Tsar had de- 
stroyed the roads. Urged by Mazeppa, chief of the Cossacks, 
who offered to join him with 30,000 men, and supply him 

1708. with provisions, he entered the Ukraine. Here he encoun- 
tered nothing but disappointment. Mazeppa's plans had been 
discovered ; no supplies were provided : general Lewenhaupt, 
whom he had ordered to join him with 15,000 men from Livo- 
nia, arrived with his army reduced to 4000 men. Though 
urged by his ministers to retreat, or to winter in the Ukraine, 
he madly resolved to proceed. He laid siege to Pultowa, a 
strong town. His army was now reduced to less than 30,000 
men ; the Tzar, at the head of 70,000, approached to its relief. 
Charles, leaving 7000 to conduct the siege, advanced to give 

1739. him battle. (July 8). The result of the conflict was that 
Charles, with 300 men, sought a refuge with the Turks at 
Bender. The entire Swedish army were killed or tjiken. 
Augustus recovered Poland; and, but for the emperor and 
the maritime powers, Sweden would have been dismem- 
bered. 

After an abode of nearly five years in Turkey, Charles re- 
turned to his own dominions, and conducted the war against 
the Danes and Saxons. He was at length killed before the 
718. fortress of Fredericshall, in Norway. His sister Ulrica was 
crowned queen. 

Peter, justly styled the Great, having given his country a 
rank among European powers, introduced into her civilization 
and the arts, and founded a capital in the north of his domin- 
ions, took the title of emperor. But he never was able to 
subdue the native ferocity of his own temper, and he put to 
death his son Alexis for no just cause. He left his crown to 

J 725. his wife, the famous Catherine I. 

England. 

The chief domestic events in Great Britain were the union 
with Scotland, accomplished in 1706, and the settlement of 
701. the crown on Sophia, duchess dowager of Hanover, and her 
heirs, being Protestants. This princess was daughter of 
Elizabeth, daughter of James I., who wa? married to the un 
fortunate elector palatine. 




Rising of the Scottish Clans, in 1715. 



40* 



473 



CHAI.VI. PERIOD OF COMPARATIVE REPOSE. 475 

CHAP. VI. 

PERIOD OF COMPARATIVE REPOSE. 

F^gland. 

On the death of queen Anne, Georg'e elector of Hanover a. d 
was, by virtue of the act of settlement, proclaimed king. The ^'i'* 
power of the state was now committed to the Whigs, and the 
late Tory ministers, who had been desirous of securing the 
succession of the son of James IL, now ealled the Pretender, 
were impeached of high treason. Louis XIV. had refused to 
take any share in the projects of the Pretender, bat, on his 
death, the regent of France secretly encouraged him. His 
partisans rose in arms in the Highlands of Scotland and the 1715i 
west of England. The English rebels were forced to surren- 
der at Preston; and the battle of Sheriif-Muir, though not de- 
cisive, crushed the ho[>es of the northern rebels. The Pre- 
tender himself landed in Scotland, b«t> finding his affairs des- 
perate, retired. 

In this reign was passed the act for making parliaments 
septennial instead of triennial, which they had previously 1727. 
been. George II. succeeded his fsiih&r. 

The Quadruple Alliance, » 

Philip V, had, afler the death of his first queen, married 1714. 
Elizabeth Farnese, presumptive heiress of Parmai, Placentia, 
and Tuscany. She was a woman of spirit, and governed that 
weak monarch ; she w^as herself directed by Alberoni, a na- 
tive of Placentia. This bold statesman formed the project of 
recovering all the dominions ceded at the peace of Utrecht, 
especially those in Italy. He labored to put the finances of 
Spain on the best footing; he intrigued in every court; he 
persuaded Philip that his renunciation of the crown of France 
was invalid, and that be had even a right to the regency of 
that kingdom. Alberoni encouraged the Scottish Jacobites, and 
inflamed the French malcontents, and a plot was formed for 
a rising in Poitou, and a seizure of the person of the regent. 

The exorbitant ambition of the court of Spain determined 
the regent to enter into an alliance with England, Holland, 
and the emperor, to maintain the treaty of Utrecht. This 
was called the Quadruple Alliance. One of its articles 
was, that the duke of Savoy should exchange Sicily with the 
emperor for Sardinia, of which he was to take the title of 
king ; and by another, Don Carlos, son of the young' queee 



47G HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III 

of Spain, was to succeed to Parma, Placentia, and Tuscany 
on the death of the present possessors without issue. 
A. D. This alliance made no change in the conduct of the court 
I'ilS. of Spain, who had already taken possession of Sardinia and a 
part of Sicily, and France and England declared war against 
her. An English fleet, under Sir George Byng, entered the 
Mediterranean, defeated the Spanish fleet near Sicily, an 
that island and Sardinia were recovered. The duke of Ber 
wick reduced St. Sebastian and Fontarabia, and Philip wa 
obliged to dismiss Alberoni, and accede to the terms of th 
1720. quadruple alliance. 

1725. A private treaty was afterwards concluded between the 
emperor and the king of Spain at Vienna. This treaty gave 
umbrage to England, France, and Holland ; and to counteract 
it, one was concluded at Hanover between them and Prussia, 

1726. Denmark, and Sweden. The emperor and the king of Spain 
remained quiet ; but the English fitted out three fleets, one 
of which, under admiral Hosier, was sent to the West Indies 
to block up the galleons at Porto Bello ; but the attempt was 
a complete failure. The Spaniards, in return, laid seige to 
Gibraltar. By the mediation of France a treaty was made 

1729. at Seville, by which it was agreed that all the stipulations of 
the quadruple alliance should be fulfilled. 

1731. Tlie treaty of Seville was confirmed by the emperor, and 
the Spanish troops took possession of Parma and Placentia 
Tlie contracting powers agreed to guaranty the Pragmatic 
Sanction, or law by which the emperor secured to his female 
heirs the succession of the Austrian dominions in case of his 
dying without male issue, and the peace of Europe was now 
restored. 

1733. But, on the death of Augustus king of Poland, Stanislaus, 
who was recommended by the king of France, who had mar- 
ried his daughter, being a second time chosen king, the em- 
peror and the Russians made the Poles proceed to another 
election, and choose the elector of Saxony, son of Augustus. 
The king of France entered into an alliance with the kings 
of Spain and Sardinia, and war was commenced against the 
emperor in Germany and Italy. The French arms were suc- 
cessful in Germany. In two campaigns the Spaniards be- 
came masters of Naples and Sicily ; the troops of France and 
Savoy took Milan and other places, and gave the imperialists 
two complete defeats at Parma and at Guastella. The em- 
peror was now desirous of peace ; and as the pacific Fleury 
directed the councils of France, a treaty was easily brought 

735. about. Stanislaus was to resign his claim to the crown of 
Poland for the duchy of Lorrain, the duke of Lorrain being 



Cm\P. VI. PERPDD OF COMPARATIVE REPOSE. 477 

secured by Louis an annual pension of 3,50(),0(J0 livres till 
the death of John Gaston, the last of the house of Medici, and 
in that event the duchy of Tuscany ; the emperor was to ac- 
knowledge Don Carlos as king of the two Sicilies, and to re- 
ceive the duchies of Parma and Placentia ; Novara and Tor- 
tona were to be given to the king of Sardinia ; France was 
to give back her conquests in Germany, and to guaranty the a. d 
Pragmatic Sanction. Peace was made at Vienna on these 1738 
terms. 

Russia. 

Catherine reigned but two years after the death of Peter. 
She died in the 38th year of her age, and her son Peter became 1727 
emperor. After a short reign of three years, Peter also died. 
The Dolgoruki family, as the male line of the house of Romanov 1730 
expired in him, thought this a favorable occasion for gaining 
the love of the nation by limiting the imperial authority. 
Deputies were sent to offer the crown, on certain conditions, 
to Anne, the widow of the duke of Courland, and daughter 
of the Tsar Ivan, brother of Peter the Great. She accepted 
the conditions; but when she found herself fixed on the 
throne, she tore the contract, and ruled with absolute power. 
Having no children, Anne fixed on marrying the daughter of 
her sister Catherine, duchess of Mecklenburg, also named 
Anne, to some foreign prince, and settling the succession on 
the oflfspring of their marriage. The princess was, therefore, 
united to Anton Ulrich of Brunswick-Bevern, by whom she 
bare a son named Ivan, who succeeded the empress. 1740 

Turkish wars. 

The Turks had, in 1669, taken Candia from the Venetians. 
By the peace of Carlowitz (1699), the Venetians obtained 
the Morea, and some places in Dalmatia. While Charles 
XII. was in Turkey, a war broke out between the Turks and 
Russians; but the Tsar, who had advanced to tlie Pruth, be- 
ing greatly outnumbered by the army of the vizier, was glad 
to conclude a treaty. 1711 

Immediately after the peace of Utrecht, sultan Ahmed III. 1715 
declared war against the Venetians, and overran the Morea. 
The emperor Charles VI., as guarantee of the peace of 
Carlowitz, declared war against the Turks, and prince Eu- 
gene gave the troops of the sultan a total defeat at Peter- 
waradin. He laid siege to Belgrade, defeated an army that 1717 
came .0 its relief, and compelled it to surrender. 

A peace was made at Passarowitz. by which the Turks '"18 



478 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TIT. 

surrendered Belgrade and the Bannat of Temiswar, but re- 
tained the Morea. 
4 D. Under the pretext of the incursions of the Nogai Tatars 

1736. not being checked, the empress of Russia declared war 
against Turkey. A Russian army, under Miinnich, took pos- 
session of the Crimea. In the following campaign the town 

1737. of OczacoiF was taken by storm. The emperor now joined 
the Russians, as he was bound to do by treaty ; but the im- 

. perial arms met little success, and a peace was concluded, to 

which the Russian empress, though her forces had gained a 

great victory at Chotin, was obliged to accede. Belgrade, 

739. Sabatch, and the Austrian part of Servia, were ceded to 

Turkey ; Russia retained Azoph. 

Persia — Nadir Shah. 

The dynasty of the Suffavies had occupied the throne of 
Persia for 220 years. Their latter princes had been effemi- 
nate sensualists, and capricious tyrants. In the reign of 

1722. Shah Hoossein, Mahmood, an Affghan prince, invaded Persia, 
defeated the troops of Hoossein, and forced him to abdicato 
in his favor. Tamasp, the son of Hoossem, straggled inef- 

1725. fectually against the usurper. The Turks and the Russians 
invaded Persia. Mahmood dying, was succeeded by Ashraff, 
a valiant Affghan chief : but Tamasp was now supported by 
Nadir Kooli, who, from a low rank in one of the Turkish 
tribes in Khorassan, had, by his valor and talents, raised him- 
self to power and importance. The fortune of war was ad- 

^"29. verse to the Affghan monarch; he was defeated, and after- 
wards slain. 

Nadir was presented by Shah Tamasp with the four finest 
provhices of the empire. He turned his arms with success 
against the Turks ; but while he was absent in Khorassan, 
Tamasp marched against them, was defeated, and reduced to 
make an ignominious peace. Nadir, inveighing against this 
national disgrace, dethroned the unhappy priTice, and occu- 
732. pied his place. He then commenced operations anew against 
the Turkish forces, and defeated them. Offended at a breach 
of friendship by the emperor of India, Nadir invaded that 
country. One great victory, near Delhi, laid the power of 

1738. the descendant of Timoor at his feet. Upwards of 30,000,000 
sterling of booty, and the annexation of the country west of 
the Indus to his dominions, rewarded the victory of Nadir, 
who committed less crimes in so great a conquest than almost 
any Asiatic victor. He afterwards subdued the kings of Bok- 
hara and Kliovvaresm, and gained a final victory over the 
Turks in Armenia. For the last five years of his life, Nadii 




479 



A. D 



CHAP. Vri. TIMES OF FREDERIC II. 481 

exercised the most dreadful tyranny : he blinded his brave 
son, Riza Kooli, massacred his subjects by thousands, and 
was at length assassinated by his own officers. His nephew, 1747 
Adil Shah, seized on the supreme power, and murdered all 
the family of Nadir but his grandson, Shah Rokh, who ruled 
Khorassan while Persia was struggled for by contending 
chiefs. 



CHAP. VII. 

TIMES OF FREDERIC II. 

The Silesian Wars. 

The emperor Charles VI. was succeeded in his hereditary 1749 
dominions by his daughter Maria Theresa, who was in her 
twenty- fourth year, and married to Francis duke of Lorrain, 
now grand duke of Tuscany. Various princes laid claim to 
the wnole or a part of her dominions ; but allegiance was 
readily sworn to her by all her subjects, and by her volunta- 
rily taking the oath of their ancient sovereigns, she com- 
pletely gained the affections of the Hungarians. 

The first power by which she was assailed was Prussia. n4„ 
Frederic William, the late king, had amassed a considerable 
treasure, and formed an army of 60,000 men. His son, Fred- 
eric II., was young, talented, and ambitious: he resolved to 
take advantag-e of the present state of the queen of Hungary, 
and he revived an antiquated claim to a part of Silesia. At 
the head of 30,000 men he overran a great part of that prov- 
ince, and took Breslau, its capital. He offered to aid the 
queen with men and money to protect the rest of her domin- 
ions, and to assist in obtaining the imperial throne for her 
husband, if she would cede to him Lower Silesia. Maria re- 
fused, and sent an army against him : their forces met at 
Molwitz, near Neiss, and the superiority of the Prussian in- 
fantry won the day. 

France had guarantied the Pragmatic Sanction, and Fleury 
wished to observe it ; but the princes and the young nobility 
were eager for war, and represented that the time was come 
tor humbling the house of Austria, and exalting that of Bour- 
bon, by diminishing the Austrian dominions, and raising to 
the imperial dignity the elector of Bavaria, the stipendiary 
of France, 

The moderation of Louis yielded to these brilliant pros- 
pects: treaties of spoliation and division were made v^^ith the 
41 



482 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART ITL 

elector of Bavaria and the kings of Prussia and Poland. The 
French forces were put in motion ; Louis appointed the elec- 
tor of Bavaria to be his lieutenant-general, with the marshals 
Belleisle and Broglio under him. The king of England, fear- 
ing for his German dominions, concluded a treaty of neutrality 
for Hanover. 

The elector of Bavaria, being joined by Broglio, surprised 
Passau, and entering Upper Austria, took Lintz and menaced 
Vienna. The queen fled to Hungary, and, with her infant 
son in her arms, called on the assembled nobles for protection. 
They swore to defend her cause till death.* These were not 
idle words ; crowds of warriors rushed to the field. To the 
astonishment of her enemies, 30,000 Hungarians marched to 
the relief of Vienna. The elector retired into Bohemia, 
where, joined by 15,000 Saxons, he took Prague, and having 
^ D. been crowned king of Bohemia, proceeded to Frankfort, where 
1742. he was chosen emperor under the name of Charles VII. 

The English nation was eager for war; the pacific Sir 
Robert Walpole was obliged to retire from the helm of the 
state ; his successors resolved to assist the queen of Hungary ; 
troops were sent to the Netherlands, and a subsidy voted to 
the queen. Meantime, the Austrians had recovered Lintz, 
and they entered Bavaria, and took Munich. Another army 
advanced against the king of Prussia, who had entered Mo- 
ravia, which was to be a part of his share of the spoil. He 
retired before it, abandoning Olmutz which he had taken. 
The Austrians now intended uniting all their forces against 
Broglio and Belleisle ; but the king of Prussia, having been 
reinforced, marched to their aid, and gave battle to prince 
Charles of Lorrain at Czaslau, where, after an obstinate con- 
flict, the prince was forced to retire with the loss of 4000 
men. Immediately after this battle, the king of Prussia made 
at Breslau a separate treaty with the queen of Hungary, who 
ceded to him Silesia and Glatz, on condition of his neutrality. 
A treaty was at the same time concluded with the king of 
Poland. 

The court of France was filled with indignation at the 
conduct of the king of Prussia. Broglio and Belleisle retired 
under the walls of Prague, and oifered to surrender all their 
conquests in Bohemia for permission to retire. The queen 
insisted on their surrendering as prisoners of war. They in- 
dignantly refused. Maillebois, who commanded on the Rhine, 
marched with 40,000 men to their relief! Being joined by 
30,000 Bavarians and French, he entered Bohemia ; but, un- 

* Moriamur pro rege nostro Maria Theresa. 



CHAP VII. TIMES OF FREDERIC II. 483 

able to join Broglio and Belleisle, he was obligee to retire to 
tbe Palatinate. The French were blockaded in Prague. 
Belleisle made a most g-allant defence, and at last secretly 
left the city, and conducted his army in safety to Egra in 
the mid- winter, and through a country possessed by the 
enemy. 

The Spaniards had sent an army to seize the Italian do- 
minions of the house of Austria ; but by the active exertions 
of the English fleet, and of the king of .Sardinia and the 
Austrian general Traun, they gained little advantage. The 
court of Versailles now made offers of peace on most equi- 
table terms ; but the queen, elated with success, rejected all 
pacific measures. The imperialists were defeated at Bran- 
nau; the French were driven towards the Rhine; and the 
emperor was obliged to take refuge at Frankfort, where he 
lived in indigence and obscurity. 

The British and Hanoverian troops under the earl of Stair 
and the Austrians under thedukeof Aremburg, marched from 
the Low Countries towards Germany. The French army 
under the duke of Noailles was posted near Frankfort. The 
king of England had arrived in the camp of the allies. Noa- 
illes had cut off all their supplies. It was expected that they 
must surrender, or be cut to pieces in their retreat. The re- 
treat began: their route lay between a mountain and the 
Main. Noailles had taken possession of the village of Det- 
tingen in their front. His dispositions were admirable ; but 
having repassed the river, his nephew, the duke of Gram- 
mont, advanced (June 26), into a small plain to engage the 
allies. Noailles saw, but could not remedy, this act of im- 
prudence : the impetuosity of the French was forced to yield 
to the steadiness of the allies, and they were driven over the 
Main with the loss of 5000 men. The victory was produc- 
tive of no important results. 

The haughty conduct of Maria Theresa began now to give 
great offence in the empire ; several princes entered into a 
private negotiation with Charles VII. ; the king of Prussia 
promised his aid on his usual terms — increase of territory. A a. ». 
family compact was entered into between France and Spain, -'''*4 
and an invasion of England attempted in favor of the pre- 
tender. In Italy, the French and Spaniards were successful. 
A treaty was formed at Frankfort between the emperor, the 
king of Prussia, the elector palatine, and the landgraf of 
Hesse Cassel. The French arms were victorious in Flan- 
ders : the king of Prussia invaded Bohemia ; but he was 
driven out of it with the loss of 20,000 men, and all his bag 
gage aud artillery. The emperor had recovered his domin- 



484 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART ITI. 

ions and capital ; but, on the retreat of the Prussians, he was 
A. D. a^a,in expecting to lose them, when death came to his relief. 
'745. His son Maximilian, being only seventeen years of age, con- 
cluded a treaty of peace with the queen of Hungary. She 
agreed to recognize the imperial dignity of his late father, 
and to put him in possession of all his hereditary dominions; 
and he renounced all claim to any part of the Austrian suc- 
cession, and promised to give his vote for the grand duke of 
Tuscany at the ensuing election of an emperor. 

France and Spain resolved to continue the war. Elizabeth 
Farnese, who still directed the councils of the latter, was de- 
termined to gain" a sovereignty in Italy for her second son 
Philip. The republic of Genoa concluded an alliance with 
the house of Bourbon : the army of the confederates was 
more than double that opposed to it, and Milan, Pa via, and 
several other towns were taken. A large French army 
marched to the Main, to hold the queen of Hungary in check ; 
another of 76,000 men, under marshal Saxe, invested Tour- 
nay. The allied arniy of 50,000 men resolved to attempt its 
relief. The king and dauphin were in the French camp, and 
Saxe posted his troops strongly behind the village of Fonte- 
noy. (April 30). The allies attacked : the action commenced 
at nine, and lasted till three. The efforts made by the British 
infantry were incredible ; but not being duly supported by 
the Dutch and Austrians, they were obliged to retire, after 
having lost 10,000 men. The victory of the French cost 
them nearly an equal loss. But Tournay, Ghent, Ostend, and 
* several other towns, became their reward. 

The grand duke was meanwhile elected emperor, under 
the title of Francis I. l^he king of Prussia gained two bloody 
victories over the Austrian troops, and he entered Saxony 
and took Dresden. Peace was then concluded between him 
and the queen of Hungary, and the king of Poland. 
/'<46 Brussels was taken by marshal Saxe, and all Flanders, 
Hainault, and Brabant reduced. Prince Charles of Lorrain 
was unable to check the progress of Saxe ; Namur surren- 
dered, and the indecisive battle of Roucoux ended the cam- 
paign. In Italy, the arms of France and her allies were less 
successful : an attack on the camp of prince Lichtenstein at 
St. Lazaro failed, with great loss. The king of Sardinia 
formed a junction with the Austrians ; the French and Span- 
iards were driven under the walls of Genoa, and forced to 
• retire into France and Savoy ; and Genoa surrendered, and 
was treated in worse than the usual Austrian mode in Italy. 
The Austrians, under count Brown, 50,000 strong, invaded 




41* 



485 



0^ 



CHAP. VIT. TIMES OF FREDERIC II. 4f^7 

Provence, but were soon obliged to retire, and the Genoese 
rose and expelled them from their city. 

The French, under Lowendahl, invaded the United Prov- x. p. 
inces, and took several towns. The Dutch, become suspi- 1747 
cious of their rulers, renewed, in the person of William Henry, 
prince of Orange, the dignity of stadtholder, which had been 
discontmued since the death of William III. New energy 
was mfused into their councils. The allies, under the duke 
of Cumberland, gave battle to Saxe at Val, on his way to in- 
vest Maestricht; but, the British not being properly supported, 
the advantage remained with the French. Bergen-op-Zoom 
was besieged, and carried by assault by Lowendahl. Nice 
and Villafranca were meanwhile taken by Belleisle in Italy, 
and an army of Austrians and Piedmontese formed, but were 
forced to raise the siege of Genoa. The English were suc- 
cessful at sea. Louis became anxious for peace. 

A congress was opened at Aix-la-Chapelle. Saxe laid 1743 
siege to Maestricht : while he was occupied in it, a cessation 
of arms was ordered, and peace was concluded at the end of 
the year. Parma, Placentia, and Guastalla were ceded to 
Philip, with provision against their being united to the crown 
of Spain, or of the Two Sicilies. Silesia and Glatz were 
guarantied to the king of Prussia, whose selfish policy began 
the war, and who was the only real gainer by it. France 
and England, by all their waste of blood and treasure, gained 
— nothing. 

England. 

During these continental wars, England had enjoyed inter- 
nal tranquillity, till, in 1745, Charles Edward, son of the pre- 
tender, landed in the north of Scotland, and was joined by 
several of the Highland clans. There being no adequate 
force there to oppose them, they took possession of Dunkeld, 
Perth, Dundee, and Edinburgh. At Preston Pans they de- 
feated the royal troops. After some delay, they marched into 
England, took Carlisle, and advanced As far as Derby. But 
not finding themselves to be joined by the English Jacobites, 
they retreated homewards. Carlisle was retaken by the dukei^ 
of Cumberland ; but Stirling fell into the hands of the rebels, 
and general Hawley, who was coming to its relief, was routed 
by them at Falkirk. On the advance of the duke of Cum- 
berland, the pretender retired northwards, followed by the 
royal army. The final and fatal battle to the hopes of the 
pretender was fought at Culloden (April 16). After long 174€. 
skulking in various disguises, and experiencing a fidelity and' 
honor creditable to the national character he made his escape 



488 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART lit 

to France. The barbarity exercised by the victors would dis- 
gfrace the best of causes. Perhaps, few greater instances of 
human folly could be shown than this blind attachment to an 
obstinate, tyrannical, and bigoted family. 

Russia. 

In the semi-barbarous court of Russia^ revolution succeeded 
revolution, and ended in placinj^ Elizabeth, daughter of Peter 
the Great and Catherine, on the throne. 8he nominated as 
A. D. her successor Charles Peter Ulrick, duke of Holstein, son of 
1744 her sister Anna. She had him styled Grand Prince, and he 
espoused Sophia Augustus, princess of Anhalt-Zerbst, who 
took the name of Catheruie Alexievna. This prince had had 
his choice of the crowns of Sweden and Russia. He unfor- 
tunately chose the latter. 

The Seven Years* War. 

Europe enjoyed but short repose after the peace of Aix- 
la-Chapelle. France and England still quarrelled about 
boundaries in America, and still carried on war in India. 
England, as war seemed inevitable, wished to make it solely 
a naval one ; and it was arranged to put Hanover under the 
protection of the king of Prussia. The court of France was 
displeased at this project; and the court of Vienna hoped, by 
means of this displeasure, to recover Silesia, and to free itself 
from the fears it entertained of the ambition of Frederic. The 

1755. houses of Bourbon and Habsburg laid aside their jealousy, of 
two hundred and eighty years.' standing, and concluded an 
alliance: they were joined by Sweden and Saxony. The 
empress of Russia, who was bound to aid the king of Prussia 
in protecting Hanover, declared against him. Spain, Portugal, 
the Italian powers, and the United Provinces remained neu- 
tral. Prussia and England stood alone. 

1756, The island of Minorca was taken by the French ; and their 
arms were successful in India and America. The king of 
Prussia entered Saxony, and made himself master of Dresden : 
he invaded Bohemia, and routed the Austrians at Lowesitz ; 

^ the Saxon army surrendered at Ebenhert. 
1757 The marshal d'Estrees passed the Rhine, with eighty 
thousand men, to invade Hanover. The duke of Cumber- 
land, with forty thousand Hanoverians and Hessians, attempt- 
ed its defence, but was driven across the Weser ; and the 
French became masters of the electorate. The Prussians 
entered Bohemia in four divisions : that commanded by the 
- prince of Bevern obliged the Austrians to retire at Reichen 
berg. This division, and that of marshal Schwerin, united 



CHAP VI l. TIMES OF FREDERIC 11. 489 

with the one led by the king, eng^ao^ed the Austrian army 
under prince Charles of Lorrain and count Brown, at Prague. 
The Prussians were victorious, and besieged the Austrians 
in that town ; but having been defeated at Colin, they raised 
the siege, and evacuated Bohemia. The combined German 
and French army had meantime advanced into Saxony: the 
king of Prussia hastened to Dresden, assembled an army, and 
at the village of Rosbach (Nov. 5) gave them battle, with 
but half their number of men. His victory was brilliant, his 
loss being but five hundred, while that of the enemy was nine 
thousand killed, wounded, and taken. The Austrians had de- 
feated the prince of Bevern, and taken Breslau. Frederic 
gave them battle, and defeated them at Lissa : Breslau was 
recovered. The Russians, who had entered the Prussian do- 
minions, were forced, by want of provisions, to return home : 
the Swedes were driven under the walls of Stralsund : the 
Hanoverians rose against the French ; but the English were 
unsuccessful in North America, and at sea. 

At the head of the Hanoverians, prince Ferdinand of a. d 
]>runswick obliged the French to cross the Rhine, and de- 1758. 
feated them at Crevelt. The king of Prussia recovered 
Schweidnitz, and invested Olmutz ; but the approach of a 
large Russian force obliged him to raise the siege. At Zorn- 
dorf he defeated them with great slaughter. At Hochkirchen 
he was himself defeated by the Austrians : he afterwards 
forced them to retire into Bohemia. Marshal Daun was 
obliged to retire from before Dresden, and Frederic entered 
it in triumph. 

The English admirals Hawke and Anson restored the lus- 
tre of the British arms at sea. In America, the islands of 
Cape Breton and St. John's were taken by general Amherst; 
the French settlements on the coast of Africa were reduced. 
In India, the advantage was on the side of the French. 

At the commencement of the next campaign, the Prussian 1759 
arms were victorious on all sides. The French had made 
themselves masters of Frankfort on the Main. Prince Fer- 
dinand, with an inferior force, attacked the duke of Broglio 
at Bergen, in its vicinity, but was forced to retire with some 
loss. The French reduced Minden, Miinster, and some 
other places. To save Hanover, the prince found it necessary 
to give them battle: the conflict took place (Aug. 8) at 
Minden : the French were defeated. The blame of the vic- 
tory not being complete was laid on lord George Sackville, 
the English commander. 

The Russians defeated the Prussian general Wedel in Sile 
sia. Frederic attacked the combined Austrian and Russian 



490 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

arm}', of eig-hty thousand men, at Cunersdorf; and the hor- 
rible carnage of the day ended in tlie defeat of the Prussians : 
yet Frederic, almost immediately after, forced his enemies to 
act on the defensive. 

The French army in Westphalia was extremely numerous : 
a portion of it was defeated by prince Ferdinand at Warburg 
but the French remained masters of Hesse. The Austrian 
and Russians poured into the dominions and conquests of 
Frederic, and in his camp at Lignitz he was in danger of be 
ing surrounded by three hostile armies. He advanced to 
meet, and defeated that of general Laudohn, and thus escaped 
but the Russians and Austrians entered Brandenburg, and 
pillaged Berlin. Frederic rushed into Saxony at the head 
of fifty thousand men, followed by Daun with seventy thou- 
sand men ; and at Torgau the Prussian monarch gained a 
hard-fought battle. 

The English took the island of Guadaloupe, in the West 
Indies : Crown Point and Ticonderoga were taken by gene- 
ral Amherst. Quebec, after the defeat of the French army 
by general Wolfe, surrendered. The British arms were vic- 
torious in India. Admirals Boscawen and Hawke defeated 
the French fleets off Cape Lagos and Belleisle. 
A. D. George II. died ; but his successor- resolved to continue the 

1761. war. A family compact was concluded between the courts 
of Versailles and Madrid. Prince Ferdinand repelled an at- 
tack of the French armies at Kirche Denkern; and Belleisle 
was taken by a British force. 

1762. War was now mutually declared by the courts of London 
and Madrid. Portugal, refusing to join the alliance against 
England, was invaded by the Spaniards; but they were 
driven out of it by the British and native troops. Prince 
Ferdinand was everywhere successful in Westph;ilia. 

The death of the empress of Russia relieved the king of 
Prussia from his apparently desperate situation. Peter III. 
was mild and pacific : he made a peace and alliance with the 
Prussian monarch. Frederic carried on the war with vigor 
against the Austrians ; but the dethronement and death of 
his Russian ally perple.xed him, as he knew not what the 
policy of Catherine II. might be : she continued the peace, 
but recalled her troops. Frederic recovered Silesia. A ces- 
sation of arms was made for Saxony and Silesia. Frederic 
ravaged Bohemia and Franconia. 

The British fleets and troops took Martinique and the 
Havannah, in the West Indies, and Manilla, in the Philippine 
islands. Negotiations for peace had long been going on, and 

1763. the definitive treaty was signed at Paris (Feb. 10) ; and 




General Wolfe. 



491 



YSAP VII. TIMES OF FREDERIC II. 493 

-"Dout the same time another at Hubertsburg, between tlie em- 
ffess-quecn anc ^he king of Prussia. 

England obtained all Canada, and the islands of St. John 
and Cape Breton, great part of Louisiana, her conquests on 
the Senegal, the island of Grenada : all her other conquests 
she restored. Prussia and Austria agreed to place themselves 
on the footing they were on at the commencement of hos- 
tilities. 

Thus ended the Seven Years' War — a war which had 
caused such an effusion of blood and treasure : it ended with- 
out being productive of any real advantage to any one of the 
parties. 

Suppression of the Jesuits. 

Europe now reposed from war. This period of tranquillity 
is marked by the suppression of the order of the Jesuits. 
This order was founded by a soldier, Ignatius Loyola, in the 
time of Charles V. Retaining his military ideas, Ignatius 
imposed on the members of his new order the .strictest obe- 
dience ; but his rules were simple and innocent. His suc- 
cessors, Lainez and Aquaviva, formed it into an institution 
which might vie with any of ancient or modern times. It 
speedily developed its powers ; the Jesuits became directors 
of the consciences of the great, and teachers of the young ; 
they excelled in learning ; they were the most zealous of 
missionaries. Forming a body, whose soul was the generaL 
of the order at Rome, they were the chief stay of papal power, 
and on them rested the remaining faint hopes of regaining 
spiritual dominion. But with all its great qualities and high 
aspirations, the order was fated to meet with no final suc- 
cess; the spirit of the age was against it; its assumptions 
were too high, its moral system too lax, its intrigues and 
movements too dark and complicated. 

The marquis of Pombal, the Richelieu of Portugal, hated 
the order, which stood in his way: vile calumnies were 
forged against them, and they were expelled from Portugal. 
The example was followed by France, then by Spain, Na- 
ples, and finally by Austria. Their property was seized by 
the rapacious governments: Spain and Portugal, the most 
bigoted nations, were their most relentless persecutors. It 
was the expulsion of the Moriscoes on a minor scale. The 
unhappy fathers were forced on shipboard, and landed in the 
papal states. The good Clement XIII. remonstrated — he a.d. 
could do no more — in their favor: the excellent Clement 1773L 
XIV. yielded *o the torrent, and suppressed the order 
*42 



494 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

First Partition of Poland. 

An event now occurred which throws into the shade all 
that we have previously seen of injustice and ag-g-ression. 
A. D. The empress Catherine II. the northern Clytemnestra, had 
762. ascended the throne of her deposed and murdered husband, 
and had piously restored to the clergy their beards, pictures, 
and revenues, of which he had deprived them. Augustus 
III. king of Poland dying, the diet assembled at Warsaw to 
choose a successor proved a stormy one : the pacific empress 
considerately sent a body of troops thither to preserve the 
peace; and Stanislaus Poniatovsky, the candidate whom she 
764. favored, was of course elected. He mounted the throne in 
tranquillity ; but that state did not long endure. Animosities 
broke out between the Catholic party and that of the dissi- 
dents, who demanded an equality of rights : the latter were 
supported by the empress of Russia and the king of Prussia. 
Catherine fomented the disorders ; her troops behaved with 
the greatest insolence ; a civil war, and a war against the 
Russian intruders, agitated the unhappy country. At length 
the time seemed to be arrived for the execution of a projectf 
first conceived by the royal philosopher of Sans Souci, — the 
tranquillizing of Poland by its dismemberment. Religion ex- 
cited some qualms in the mind of Maria Theresa ; it was, 
however, forced to yield to the arguments of her enlightened 
son, Joseph. On the part of Catherine, no one looked for 
scruples. 

The plunderers would act with some faint semblance of 
justice; some ridiculous old claims were therefore trumped 
up against Poland. The king and people appealed to justice ; 
a weak appeal against Russian bayonets. All good men be 
held with abhorrence the flagrant breach of divine and human 
laws, and the hypocrisy employed to veil it: the remaining 
powers of Europe were not in a condition to 'nterfere. A 
third part of Poland was divided among the diademed rob- 
bers. A diet was called to sanction the dismemberment of 
their country ; three foreign armies were at hand to prevent 
tumult : money and promises were distributed, and a majority 
of six votes in the senate, of one in the assembly of nuncios, 
sanctioned this detestable iniquity. 

The ravished provinces were, perhaps, better under their 
new owners; for Frederic and Catheruie were both wise 
sovereigns, and Joseph thought himself an adept in legislative 
wisdom ; but eternal infamy will pursue their names, and th«. 
partition of Poland disgrace the eighteenth century of the 
Christian era. 



UHAP. VII. TIMES OF FREDERIC II. 495 

Turkish War. 

The affairs of Poland involved Russia in a war with Tur- 
key. Large armies on both sides advanced towards the Dan- a. n 
ube. The war commenced with the ravage of the frontiers. 1769 
In the sprinu- tlje standard of the prophet was displayed. The 
Russians were driven by the vizier beyond the Dneister. The 
able vizier was recalled ; his successor crossed the Dneister, 
and was defeated : Chotin and other fortresses were taken. 

A Russian fleet sailed round Europe, and appeared in the 1770 
(jrrecian seas. The Turks had driven the Russians out of 
Moldavia and Wallachia ; but the vizier was defeated near 
the rnouth of the Pruth. Bender was stormed, after a siege 
of two months, and experienced Russian barbarity. The 
Greeks of the Morea rose at the call of Russia ; the pasha of 
Bosnia entered it with 30,000 men; at Modon the hopes of 
Greece were crushed. The Turkish fleet was defeated at 
Epidaurus, and again defeated at Chios, and burnt at Chesme. 
Syria and Egypt were in rebellion. The plague broke out 
at Yassy, and spread to Moscow, where 90,000 persons died 
of it. 

The Russians broke into and seized the Crimea. The jani- 1772 
zaries rose, murdered their aga, and set fire to their camp. 
Ali, the Egyptian pasha, fell in battle against his brother-in- 
law Mohammed, and his head was sent to Constantinople. 

The Russians crossed the Danube : they were twice forced 1773 
to raise the siege of Silistria, and they lost at Varna the 
greater part of their artillery. Hassan Pasha swore to the 
sultan to drive them over the Danube, and he performed his 
oath. 

Mustafa III. died, and appointed his brother Abd-ul-Hamed 1774 
to succeed, instead of his young son Selim. As no largesses 
were distributed, the janizaries would serve no longer. 
" Peace is necessary," said the mufti to the sultan, " since 
thy people will fight no more." Catherine was also anxious 
to end the war, and peace was concluded at Kainargi. The 
free navigation of the Black Sea and some territory were 
ceded to Russia. 

American Revolutionary War. 

Northern America had been chiefly colonized by the Eng- 
&h; the settlements of the Dutch and French were acquired 
by conquest. All these colonies were in the enjoyment of 
liberal and popular constitutions; the country was highly 
fertile, population rapidly increased, the energy and the bold- 
ness of youth animated the people, and crowds of colonists 



406 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TTI. 

from Europe annually arrived on their shores. 'I'he mother 

country being oppressed by debt, a plan was devised to make 

^ P the colonies contribute to her relief, and a stamp-duty on va- 

. 765. rious articles was imposed. The Americans remonstrated ; a 

1766. change took place in the ministry, and the act was repealed. 

The spirit of oppression on the one hand, and of resistance 
on the other, still continued ; and when the parliament im- 
posed a duty on tea, the Americans refused to pay it, and at 
Boston the tea was flung- into the sea. The British parlia- 
ment passed bills for shutting up the port of Boston, and al 
774. tering the constitution of Massachusetts. The colonists called 
a provincial congress, and addressed a manly petition to 
the king. It was not received. The king and parliament 
in their wisdom, or rather in their pride, determined on what 
are called strong measures^ and a civil war began. 
1775. In the contest between England and her American colonies, 
the first blood was shed at Lexington, in New-England. Eight 
hundred British grenadiers and light infantry were sent out 
from Boston, for the purpose of destroying some military 
stores collected at Concord. On receiving intelligence of 
this movement, the provincials of that neighborhood rose en 
masse. A small body of them, appearing at Lexington, were 
fired upon by the British, who then proceeded to Concord and 
destroyed the public stores; but they were here attacked 
with such spirit by the provincials, as to compel their imme- 
diate retreat to Boston, with the loss of sixty-five killed and 
two hundred and eight wounded and prisoners. From this 
day, (April 18th,) the British were ibrmally besieged in Boston. 

On the 17th June, the provincials, having thrown up a re- 
doubt on Bunker's Hill, a position which commanded Boston, 
wfere attacked by 3000 British, under generals Howe and 
Pigot. The British were twice repulsed with heavy loss. On 
the third attack, being reinforced, and the Americans having 
exhausted their ammunition, the redoubt was carried with 
the loss of 1054 British, and 450 Americans. 

General Montgomery entered Canada with a small force, 
and fell in an unsuccessful attempt on Q,uebec. 

The first provincial congress had assembled at Concord, 
Massachusetts, in 1774. A second assembled at Philadelphia 
(May 1775), appointed John Hancock their president, and 
George Washington commander-in-chief of the provincial 
forces. He joined the army at Cambridge in July, and held the 
British under general Howe closely besieged in Boston till 
March, 1776, when the town was evacuated, and Washing 
1776. ton entered it in triumph. 

The British admiral Sir Peter Parker, with a heuvj nava 




Surrender of Burgoyne. 



42* 



497 



CHAP. Vn. TIMES OF FREDERIC II. 499 

force, was defeated in an attempt on Charleston, the capital 
of South Carolina, by four hundred militia and soldiers of the 
line intrenched on Sullivan's Island, under colonel Moultrie. 

On the 4th of July, 1776, the congress declared the inde- 
pendence of the United States of America. 

New-York was occupied by the British, under general 
Howe, and the Americans were compelled to retreat from 
New-Jersey. The latter, however, was soon recovered by a. d. 
general Washington, in the decisive actions of Trenton and 1777 
Princeton. 

General Washington, with an inferior force, hazarded an 
engagement with Sir W. Howe, near the river Brandywine, 
and was defeated with the loss of 1200 men. This was the 
first action in winch the marquis de La Fayette was engaged. 
He was a young French nobleman, who had abandoned his 
brilliant prospects at the court of his sovereign, to embrace 
the cause of liberty. 

The English took Philadelphia, and defeated the republic- 
ans, who attacked them at Germantown ; but general Bur- 
goyne, who, having reduced Ticonderoga, was advancing to 
join general Howe, was attacked at Saratoga, by colonel Ar- 
nold: general Gates coming up with a considerable force, 
prepared to surround Burgoyne, who, after a fruitless attempt 
to force his wny, was obliged to fall back on Saratoga, and 
there to capitulate. His troops, 5790 in number, were to be 
sent to England, and not to serve again in North America 
during the war. The killed, wounded, and prisoners in the 
preceding part of the expedition, amounted to upwards of 
4000 men. 

France had long been watching the progress of the con- 1778 
test. This last event decided her, and an alliance was formed 
with the infant republic. The court of Spain soon after fol- 
lowed her example. An indecisive engagement took place 
between the British and French fleets off LFshant : Sir Henry 
Clinton took the chief command in America: he forthwith 
abandoned Philadelphia, and retired to New- York. An at- 
tempt on Rhode Island, by the American general Sullivan 
&nd the French admiral d'Estaine, proved a failure. Com- 
missioners were sent out from England to treat with the 
Americans ; but as the latter insisted on the recognition of 
heir independence, nothing could be efifected. 

Savannah, the capital of Georgia, having been taken by 
colonel Campbell with 2000 British troops, the whole prov- 
ince of Georgia seemed reunited to the British crown. An 1779 
unsuccessful attempt was made to recover Savannah by gen- 
eral Lincoln, aided by a naval force under d'Estaine. 



oOO IIISTOIIY OF THE WOULD. PART IIT. 

A. D. 

. 780. Charleston capitulated to g'eneral Clinton, and the province 
of Smth Carolina vvas forced into a temporary submission to 
the British. A provincial force, consisting- principally of mi- 
litia, under general Gates, was defeated at Camden by the 
British under earl Cornwallis and lord Rawdon. In this cam- 
paign occurred the defection of Arnold, and the detection 
and execution of the British major Andre as a spy. Sir 
George Rodney defeated the Spanish fleet oflT cape St. Vin- 
cent, and thrice engaged, though not with decided success, 
the French fleet under count de Guichen. 

The jealousy of the continental powers of Europe now 
showed itself, by the armed neutrality, which they all, under 
the guidance of the tsarina of Russia, now entered into to 
resist the right of search and blockade claimed by England. 
A correspondence between Holland and the United States 
relating to a loan and treaty being discovered, England de- 
clared war against the Dutch ; and the island of St. Eustatia, 
a rich magazine of wealth, was taken and plundered by a 
nr "8l force under admiral Rodney. While his fleet was weak- 
ened by a detachment sent to England with the produce of 
the sales of confiscated property, the French were enabled 
to gain a superiority on the American coast, which led to the 
total ruin of the British army in America. 

.781. The Spaniards laid siege to Gibraltar, which was gallantly 
defended ; but Minorca was forced to surrender. Indecisive 
sea-actions were fought between. Sir Hyde Parker and the 
Dutch, and between Sir S. Hood and the count de Grasse. 
The island of Tobago surrendered to the French. 

The French admiral now resolved to assist the Americans 
with vigor. They had defeated colonel Tarleton at the Cow- 
pens, in Carolina, and, though not victorious in their attack 
on Cornwallis at Guilford, had caused him considerable loss. 

General Greene was defeated by lord Rawdon at Hobkirk ; 
but soon after attacked the British force under colonel Stew- 
art at Eutaw Springs, and overthrew them with a loss on 
their side of eleven hundred men, including prisoners and 
wounded. This action terminated the war in South Caro- 
lina. 

Earl Cornwallis having retreated from Carolina, took a sta- 
tion at Yorlvtown, on York river, in Virginia, and had fortified 
it and Gloucester on the opposite bank. The count de Grasse, 
with a French fleet of 28 sail, having entered the Chesa- 
peake, prevented admiral Greaves affording any relief to 
Cornwallis, and general Clinton failed to send any aid from 
New- York. A combined American and French army under 
Washington and Rochambeau, besieged him, and after some 




501 



CHAP. VII. TIMES OF FREDERIC II. 503 

weeks Cornwallis was compelled to capitulate. The troops, 
7000 in number, were made prisoners of war ; the ships be- 
came prizes to the French. j^ p 

The war in America was now ended. The British ministry 1782. 
was changed. England saw the folly of protracting a useless 
and destructive contest. She acknowledged (Jan. 20) the 1783 
independence of the United States. A new constitution of 
government was formed, and Washington was chosen presi- 
dent. 

Of the injustice of this war on the part of England, few 
now have any doubt ; its importance, as an example, has been 
felt in every subsequent struggle for liberty which the world 
has witnessed. 

India. 

The conquests of the Portuguese in the East were amaz- 
ingly rapid. At the time they fell under the yoke of Spain, 158« 
they were all-powerful on the coasts of India, possessed the 
Moluccas, the coast of Ceylon, the isles of Sunda, and the 
trade of China and Japan. The Dutch used to purchase the 
products of the East at Lisbon, and distribute them over Eu- 
rope. Philip II. having prohibited all intercourse with them 
as rebels, they made their way to India, and formed a settle- 
ment in Java, and an East India company was established. 
While Portugal was united with Spain, they made constant 1595. 
war on her in the East, and in a few years they left her no- 
thing there but Goa. 

The English appeared in India a few years after the Dutch. 1600 
They also had formed a company. Their first settlements 
were in Java, Banda, Amboyna, and Poleron. The Dutch 
were jealous of them, and the rival companies carried on war 
against each other. A treaty was concluded to arrange their 1623. 
differences; but the Dutch, regardless of it, barbarously mas- 
sacred the English at Amboyna and otlier places, and ex- 
pelled them from the Spice Islands. The supineness of James 
I., and afterwards the civil wars of England, prevented the 
nation attending to the East. Cromwell had a British spirit; 
the company throve in his time : Charles II. betrayed and 
oppressed it. 

The great Colbert had formed a French East India com- 1661 
pany; their chief settlement was at Pondicherry, on the 
Coromandel coast. Thus the three greatest maritime powers 
were established in India, and the wars of Europe were now 
to be extended to that distant region. 

During the war of the succession, the French had taken 1746 
the English settlement of Madras. At the peace o*" Aix-la- 



504 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

Chapelle it was restored. M. Dupleix, the governor of Pon- 
dicherry, formed a grand plan for gaining territory for the 
French India Company. Having a good body of troops undei 
him, he, by their valor, and his own intrigues, managed tc 
have the candidate he sided with appointed subahdar of the 
Decan, and to get the nabobship of the Carnatic for Chunda 
Sahib, for whose life he was himself appointed nabob of that 
province. Dupleix aimed at obtaining all the country be- 
tween Masulipatam, Goa, and Cape Coinorin. Mohammed 
Aii, son of the late nabob of Arcot, implored the assistance 

j^ p_ of the English, who gave him some reinforcements, and sev- 

751. eral actions took place. In this war the famous Clive first 
appeared ; with a small force he took Arcot, and wJien Chunds 
Sahib besieged it with a large army, he defended it with 
amazing talent and courage, and repelled the assailants. Re 
inforced by colonel Kirkpatrick, he pursued and defeated the 
enemy on the plains of Arni. The rajah of Tanjore, and 
other princes, joined the English : Chunda and the French 
were several times defeated. Mohammed was acknowledged 
nabob of Arcot ; the French lost the greater part of their ac- 
quisitions ; and peace was about to be made, when a new wai 
broke out in Europe. 

The three rival companies had early established factories ir 
Bengal; but the good policy of the Mogul government pre- 

1696. vented their having any garrison or works of defence. O: i 
occasion of a rebellion of the rajahs west of the Hooglee, th^ 
factories augmented their soldiery and declared for the nabob, 
who gave them permission to put their settlements in a state 
of defcncp. The Dutch then fortified their factory at Hoog- 
lee, the Frencli theirs at Chandernagore, and the English 
theirs of Fort Willifim at Calcutta. 

The English obtained some advantages from the court of 
Dnlhi, and increased their wealth and power. Suraj-ud- 

1756. Dowlali, the subahdar of Bengal, Bahar, and Orissa, oflended 
at their abuse of their privileges, and by their protecting a 
nobleman who had fled from his vengeance, suddenly marched 
with 50,000 men against Calcutta. After an ineffectual re- 
sistance, the governor and all but 200 of the garrison of Fort 
William escaped on shipboard. Mr. Holwell, who now took 
the command, soon saw himself and his unhappy companions 
'mmured by the cruel subahdar in the Black Hole, where 
nearly the whole perished. The affairs of the English in 
Bengal seemed now entirely ruined. 

T'>7. But the affairs of the company on the coast of Coromandel 
being now settled, admiral Watson took on board colonel 
Clive and some troops, and sailed for Calcutta. That town 



CTIAP. VII. TIMES OF FREDERIC II. 505 

was recovered, Hooglee reduced, and the subahdar obliged to 
sue for peace. He agreed to restore every thing, and to 
allow the presidency to extend over thirty-eight neighboring 
villages. The English now turned their arms against the 
French, and besieged and took Chandernagore. Clive aimed 
at farther humbling the subahdar, who was backward in ful- 
filling the treaty. In artifice, dissimulation, and what else is 
dignified with the name of policy, he was a full mutch for an 
Asiatic: he secretly gained Jaffier, the commander of the 
troops of the province, and he persuaded the subahdar to dis- 
band the forces he had collected at Plassy. Clive advanced 
to take that important post ; but the subahdar had reassembled 
his army, and occupied it. His forces were 50,000 foot, and 
18,000 horse; those of Clive 1000 Europeans, and 2000 Se- 
poys ; yet he ventured to give battle, and gained a victory. 
Jaffier was acknowledged by him subahdar, Suraj-ud-Dowlah 
was taken and put to death by order of the son of Jaffier; 
and the latter agreed to pay his allies the sum of 2,750,000 
pounds sterling, and to enlarge their territory. 

The war was carried on between the French and English ^ ^^ 
in the Carnatic. Count Lally, the French commander, being 1758 
largely reinforced from home, reduced Cudalore and Fort St. 
David. Next year he failed in an attempt on Madras. The 1759 
British now took the field, and reduced Masulipatam and Con- 
jeveram. Wandewash w^as reduced by colonel Coote, who 
defeated a strong army led by Lally to attempt its recovery. 
Surat was taken by an English force from Bombay ; and the 
Dutch were well castigated in Bengal for their designs against 
the English in that quarter. 

The English had deposed their ally Jaffier in Bengal (1760), 
and placed Co^sim on the musmid. Their cupidity made 
them seize a pretext for making war on this prince : they de- 
prived him of the whole province of Bengal, and Jaflier was 
again declared subahdar. The Great Mogul and the nabob 1765 
of Oude in vain supported Cossim : they were obliged to sue 
for peace. In the Mysore a war was carried on, mostly to 
the advantage of the English, against Hyder Ali. 

Durino- the American war, the French lost all their set- 
tlements in India. The company carried on a vigorous war 
against Hyder Ali and the Mahrattas. Colonels Baillie and 1778 
Fletcher were with their whole force taken or slain by Hyder 
and his son Tippoo; but Sir Eyre Coote defeated them in 1781 
several engagements. After the death of his father, Tippoo 
continued the war. 

The English had now an extensive empire in India. Much 
is it to be deplored tha^ '*" the acquisition and management 
43 



506 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III 

of it, the rights of humanity and justice were so frequently 
trampled upon. It is an important inquiry what has been or 
is to be the advantage or evil to India and Britain from their 
close connexion. 

Persia. 

A. D. When the dynasty of Nadir had been extinguished in Per- 

• '^^^ sia, the sovereignty of that country was contended for by the 
different rival chiefs, whose claims were all successively 
forced to yield to the power and the merit of Kerreem Khan, 
a chief of the native Persian tribe of Zend. The reign of 
this excellent prince, who occupied the throne twenty-six 
years, is a delightful object of contemplation amid the scenes 
of barbarity characteristic of eastern despotism. Justice, 
clemency, moderation, goodness of heart, distinguished all his 
actions. He lived and died happily amidst a grateful and 

1779. contented people. 

On the death of Kerreem Khan, his brothers and nephews 
contended for the vacant throne. After the usual series of 

1789. atrocities attendant on such an event, the power remained in 
the hands of Lootf Ali Khan, a youth of astonishing military 
talent and courage ; but having behaved with ingratitude to 
the able and virtuous Hajee Ibrahim, governor of Sheeraz, to 
whom he was chiefly indebted for his throne, the latter, seeing 
that he had no security for his life but in depriving the kmg 
of the power to injure him, entered into a secret treaty with 
Aga Mohammed Khan, chief of the Kajirs, a Turkish tribe, 
settled in Mazenderan by Abbas the Great, who was now 
grown so powerful as openly to aspire to the empire. Lootf 
Ali Khan, after struggling for his crown with a heroism 

1795. rarely paralleled, fell at length into tlie hands of his cruel 
rival, by whom he was put to death, with every refinement 
of barbarity. This unliappy prince was but twenty-five years 
old. Aga Mohammed was uncle to the present king of Per- 

1796 sia ; and by his vigor and cruelty, he left the kingdom to his 
successor in the state of obedience it has ever since main 
tained. 



CHAP. VIII. 

TIMES OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION AND EMPIRE. 

State of Europe, 

Literature now exerted a much more powerful mfluence 
over the public mmd than it had done at any preceding period. 
A set of men, many of them of talents of the first order, ar 




507 



CHAP VJII. FRENCH REVOLUTION AND EMPIRE. 509 

rogating- to themselves the exclusive title of philosophers, and 
actuated at first, perhaps, by a zeal for truth, carried on an 
incessant warfare against all that they were pleased to de- 
signate as superstition and vulgar prejudice. But theirs was 
not that philosophy which, elevated above all low and grovel- 
ing passions, and irradiated by light from heaven, views with 
pity rather than contempt the aberrations of man, and seeks 
by mild and gentle methods to lead him into the way of truth. 
It was heartless, cold, and cheerless; its surnmum bonum 
was sensual indulgence or literary fame, and few of its pro- 
fessors displayed any real dignity of soul : its favorite weapon 
was ridicule ; it attacked not alone the absurdities of the 
popular faith, but it levelled its shafts at the sublimest truths 
of religion ; it shook the firmest bases of social order, and 
sought to rob man of all lofty hopes and aspirations. Every 
mode of composition, from the highest science and most seri- 
ous history down to the lightest tale, was made the vehicle 
of this philosophy, with which was often joined a sickly, 
affected sensibility, calculated to gain it admittance even into 
the female bosom. The consequence was, as might be ex- 
pected, a general laxity of principle. 

The chief seat of this philosophy was France, where a 
court, corrupt and profligate beyond, perhaps, any which 
Europe had yet witnessed, had utterly degraded the minds of 
the upper classes of society. The efforts of the virtuous 
Louis XVI. to stem this torrent were unavailing : national 
vice was not to escape its merited chastisement. The middle 
orders were disgusted and galled by the privileges of the 
noblesse, and their excessive pride and insolence; the writings 
of the philosophers, and the scandalous lives of many of the 
clergy, had shaken their reverence for religion ; the abuses 
and oppression of arbitrary and extravagant government were 
keenly felt ; the glorious struggle of the English for liberty 
in the last century, and the dignity and prosperity consequent 
on it, awaked the aspirations of the better disposed; the 
achievement of American independence filled the minds of 
many enthusiasts with vague ideas of freedom and happi- 
ness beneath republican institutions ; and the lower orders in 
general looked forward to any change as a benefit. 

It was a time of innovation, turmoil, and violent change. 
The English colonies had thrown off the bridle of the mother 
country, whom she curbed too straitly. The kingdom of 
Poland had been most nefariously dismembered. Gustavus 
III. of Sweden had overthrown the aristocracy, and made 
himself absolute. A contest arose in the United ProvinceSy a r 
between tlie partv of the stadtholder and those who wished H^a 
43^ 



510 HISTOR'S OF THE WORLD. PART IIT. 

to make the government of a more republican form, which 

drew the attention of all tlie principal powers: the respective 

^, 1). parties appealed to arms, and by Prussian aid the republicans 

1787. were crushed. All these were but preludes to the storm 

which was soon to burst over Europe. 

1787. The east of Europe was meantime precipitated into war. 
The Turkish sultan, apprehensive of the designs of the 
tsarina and the emperor .Toseph, declared war against Russia. 
The Turks commenced by the bombardment of Kilburn, *m 
the Dneiper; but, while forming the trenches, they were at- 
tacked by Suvaroff, and nearly their whole force destroyed. 
Joseph now took part in the war, and opened it by a treach- 
erous attempt on Belgrade : he entered the Turkish domin- 
ions at the head of a considerable force; but he reaped little 

1788. military fame, and could only boast of the reduction of 
Choczim. 

The king of Sweden now entered into the war at the in- 
stigation of the king of Prussia and the Porte, and severe 
naval conflicts took place in the Baltic ; but several of Gus- 
tavus's officers refused obedience to him, and the Danes pre- 
pared to attack him on the side of Norway. A Russian flo- 
tilla, under the prince of Nassau Siegen, defeated Hassan, 
the capudan-pasha, off Oczakoff! In three other conflicts lie 
was equally unfortunate. The siege of Oczakoff* was formed 
by prince Potemkin : the town was taken by assault, and the 
inhabitants butchered and pillaged by the soldiery. 

1789 Abd-ul-hamed, dying suddenly, was succeeded by his nephew 
Selim III. ; but success did not revisit the Ottoman arms. 
On the plains of Rimnik they failed before the Austrians and 
Russians, and Belgrade surrendered to the Austrian general 
Laudohn. But disease and chagrin at the resistance offered 
to his innovations in the Netherlands, and the discontents in 

^790. Hungary, terminated the existence of Joseph ; and his 
brother Leopold, grand duke of Tuscany, who succeeded 
him, after some unsuccessful efforts, concluded an armistice 
with Selim. 

On the part of the Russians, Ismael, a strong town in Bes- 
sarabia, was taken by assault by Suvaroff", during the very 
middle of winter. The ferocious warriors massacred in this 
assault fifty thousand Turks : their own loss was, according 
to their veracious commander, four thousand three hundred ; 
according to others, fifteen thousand. In the Baltic, the Rus- 
sian fleet was completely defeated by that of the Swedes 
commanded by Gustavus in person ; and preliminaries for a 
peace were soon afterwards agreed on. The war was carried 
on with vigor in Turkey: the Moslems were defeated at 



CHAP.Vm FRENCH REVOLUTION AND EMPIRE. 511 

Maczin, and Bahada, and the tsarina at length agreed tliat f a. d 
congress should be held at Yassy to arrange the terms of a 1791 
peace, which was concluded in the following year. 

An attempt made by the patriotic portion of the Pdisfi 
nation to regain their independence was crushed by the arm8 
of the Russian despot, and the nation fell back into its former 
tato of degradation. 

Frederic II. of Prussia had died in 1786. Catherine sur- 
vived him ten years, and lived to witness the horrors of the 
French revolution. 

The French Revolution. 

The disordered state of the French finances induced the 787 
court, displeased with the parliament of Paris, to assemble 
the Notables; that is, persons selected from the privileged 
orders. This measure produced no advantage, and all classes 
called for a meeting of the states-general. This national 
council was at length convoked, and met at Versailles; but 1789 
the commons were thought to assume so much power, and to 
encroach so on the other orders, that the king dismissed 
Necker, his minister of finance, and ordered some regiments 
to advance towards the capital. The populace, excited by 
the democrats, committed several outrages, and tliey took 
and demolished the fortress named the Bastile. The privi- 
leges of the nobility and clergy were soon abolished. The 
king was obliged to recall Necker, and to transfer the assem- 
bly to Paris, where the mob was at the devotion of the demo- 
crats. The property of the church was now transferred to 
the nation ; the kingdom was divided into departments ; 
change followed change without intermission ; the king, for 
peace sake, assented to every thing; but commotion and 
bloodshed prevailed in different parts of the kingdom. 

The power of the democrats still increased, and the famous 1790. 
Jacobin club was formed by them. Several of the nobility 
and of the royal family quitted France. A project being 
formed for the emperor and other powers to assist the king 
in the recovery of his authority, of which he was now nearly 1791. 
deprived, he and the royal family endeavored to escape out 
of France ; but they were stopped at Varennes, and forced 
to return to Paris. The Jacobin and Cordelier factions loudly 
demanded his death, and a violent riot took place in the 
Champ de Mars. A constitutional code was at this time 
completed. 

Brissot, the leader of the Jacobins, procured a declaration 1792 
of war against Austria, and La Fayette invaded the Nether- 
lands, but he was unsuccessful. A Prussian army, undei 



512 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III- 

the duke of Brunswick, approached the French frontier; but 
toe violent and silly manifesto he put forth served only to in- 
jure tlie cause it advocated. The Jacobins, urged on by their 
atrocious leaders, excited the populace ; the king and royal 
family were put into confinement. Numbers of the nobility 
and others were murdered to prevent their joining the Prus- 
sians. Royalty was abolished. The Jacobins split into the 
Girondists, headed by Brissot and Roland, and the Jacobins, 
led by Robespierre, Danton, and Marat, three daring men 
wJiose bosoms knew not remorse. Disease and want of sup- 
plies forcing the Prussians and Austrians, who had nearly 
reached Paris, to retire, Dumouriez invaded the Netherlands, 
and, as the people were in his favor, speedily reduced them. 
Savoy was conquered, Germany invaded. The measure of 
^ jj Jacobin guilt was now nearly filled up : they brought their 
1733. amiable and unhappy king to trial, and judicially murdered 
him. This iniquitous act was followed by a declaration of 
war against the kings of England and Spain and the stadt- 
holder of Holland. 

Dumouriez invaded Holland, and reduced several towns; 
but he was defeated by the Austrians at Neer-Winden. The 
French arms were unfortunate also in Germany. Dumouriez 
formed a plan for restoring a king and constitutional govern- 
ment to France; but it being detected, he was forced to take 
refuge with the Austrians. An English army, under the 
duke of York, was now in Holland. Dampierre, Dumou- 
riez's successor, was defeated and slain. The French lost 
almost all their conquests; their raw levies were cut to 
pieces ; yet, under Hoche, they were again successful. The 
English filled in an attack on Dunkirk: the Austrians were 
driven within their own boundaries. 

The French and Spaniards fought with various success at 
the Pyrenees. A savage civil war now broke out in the 
island of St. Domingo, At home, the Brissotine party was 
overthrown, and all the heads of it executed : the infamous 
duke of Orleans also suffered the fate he had so long merited. 
The monsters now too shed the blood of the unhappy queen. 
A revolt having broken out in the south of France, it was 
quenched in blood ; and the city of Lyons had a bitter expe- 
rience of republican humanity. A war was carried on in 
La Vendee by the friends of royalty and religion ; but for- 
tune favored the enemies of both. The English, aided by 
Spain and Naples, had taken possession of Toulon ; they were 
forced, however, to abandon it. 
/94 The war in the Netherlands was carried on with great 
vigor : the French troops were commanded by Pichegru and 




louis XYI. and Marie Antoinette 



613 



CHAP. Vf II. FRENCH REVOLTITION AND EMPIRE. 515 

Jourdan. After a variety of fortune, and the battle of Fleunis, • 
g-ained by the latter, the tide ran in favor of the French, and 
the whole of the Netherlands were subdued. In Germany, 
lourdan defeated Clairfait, and reduced Juliers and Cologne. 

In France, the guillotine was pouring out blood in all quar- 
ters at the command of Robespierre and his ruthless asso- 
ciates ; but at last Justice awoke a little from her slumber, 
and the tyrant himself met the fate he more than deserved. 
Danton had already cxp-' rienced it, and Marat had fallen by 
the hand of Charlotte Corde. 

Howe on the 1st of June defeated the French fleet. The 
Corsicans placed themselves under the king of England. But 
the French were victorious at the Pyrenees, and in Holland 
they met with uniform success. The middle ranks of the 
Dutch were in their favor ; a revolution took place, and the 4. i> 
people of the United Provinces, under the name of allies, be- J'^S.n 
came the subjects of France. 

Europe, to the peace of Campo Formio. 

While exclaiming against the horrors of the French revo- 1792. 
lution, the royal spoilers fell again on unhappy Poland, and 
tore away some more of her limbs. The Poles, led by the 
brave Kosciuszko, took arms, and made a brave resistance ; 
but the defeat at Matchewitz broke their hopes, which tinally 
expired when Warsaw was taken, and its garrison massacred 
by the ferocious Suvaroff. A new division of plunder now 1792 
took place. How rarely are uncontrolled power and a due 
setise of justice to be found in union ! 

Glutted with spoil, and now desirous of repose, the king of 
Prussia made a peace with France. In that country there 
nad been a reaction, and the Jacobins were murdered and 
guillotined in their turn. The king of Spain was forced to 
seek for peace. In Germany there was some severe fighting 
between Jourdan and Clairfait. The Vendeans rose again, 
but were speedily crushed. Lord Bridport and admiral Corn- 
wallis were successful against the French fleets. Most of 
the foreign possessions of the French and Dutch were re- 
duced by the English. An insurrection broke out in Paris, 
but it was easily quelled. The constitution was now re- 
modelled. 

Numerous conflicts took place in Germany; but the 179C 
French, under Jourdan and Moreau, were unable to withstand 
the Austrians, commanded by the archduke Charles. The 
retreat of Moreau to the Rhine, ranks as one of the most mas- 
terly in history. 

Brilliant success attended the arms of the republic in Iral> 



516 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PART III. 

under the yoimcr Bonaparte. The victories of Monte Notte 
and ?»Ionte Lezino compelled the king- of Sardinia to sue for 
peace, with loss of territory. The forcing, with excessive 
loss, of the bridge of Lodi, opened Lombardy to the French. 
The pope, the princes of Tuscany, Modena, and Parma, were 
obiio-ed to purchase safety by money, books, pictures, and 
statues. Mantua was besieged : the Austrians, who had been 
reinforced, approaching to its relief, were defeated at Lonato 
and Castiglione, and Mantua was reinvested. The Trans 
and Cis-Padane republics were at this time erected. The 
English were deprived of Corsica. Spain was now at length 
induced to join in the war against England, and a mutiny 
which broke out in the navy of the latter power seemed to 
threaten her existence. 
*. D. Every attempt was made to relieve Mantua, and several 
''^^'^- actions were fought. At Rivoli the Austrians, under Alvinzi, 
struggled in vain with the utmost heroism, and Mantua was 
at length obliged to capitulate. The territories of the pope 
were next overrun, and he was forced to surrender the 
greater part of them, and pay large sums of money. Bona- 
parte then led his army northwards, resolved to invade the 
hereditary dominions of the emperor. He overran Carinthia 
and part of Styria, Carniola, and Istria ; but by the desire of 
the directory, who now governed France, he made proposals 
of peace, and articles were signed at Leoben. 

Venice now was to be favored with a new constitution by 
the French empirics. The vile oligarchy who ruled it were 
paralyzed with terror : while they negotiated, French troops 
seized all their towns, and Venice, after an independent ex- 
istence of more than 1000 years, submitted, without striking 
a blow, to be blotted out of the list of nations ; and who will 
deplore the fate of an oligarchy of whom history records 
hardly a single noble or generous action 1 Genoa, a name 
dearer to liberty, underwent a similar fate, and beca^ne the 
Ligurian republic. 

Peace was at length concluded at Campo Formio. Austria 
got Venice and the greater part of her territory; but she lost 
the Netherlands and her Italian dominions. The Ionian isl- 
ands fell to France. 

Affairs to the assumption of the chief power by Bonaparte. 

198 Rome was pillaged, and a republic erected there. Tho 
machinations of the French produced a revolution in Switzer- 
land, and that republic was united to France. Some of the 
cantons refused submission : they fought with the valor of 
patriots, but they were constrained to yield to superior power. 



CHAP VIII. FRENCH REVOLUTIOIV AND EMPIRE. 517 

Malta was now treacherously assailed and taken by Bona- 
parte, on his way to Egypt, whither, with their usual regard 
to good faith and justice, the directory had sent him. He 
landed near Alexandria, stormed that town, and massacred 
the inhabitants. The Mamelukes were routed at Embaba, 
and Cairo submitted. Meanwhile the English admiral Nel- 
son destroyed (Aug. 1) the French fleet at Aboukir. 

A rebellion broke out in Ireland ; but after a short strug- 
gle, the insurgents, not being aided by France, were forced 
to submit. The tsar now took share in the war, and the em- 
peror of Austria and the king of Naples also prepared to en- 
gage in it. 

The Neapolitan troops invaded the Roman territory, but a. d 
were driven back. The French advanced ; the king fled to ^'799 
Palermo ; Capua surrendered. The peasantry and populace 
of Naples fought, but in vain, in defence of their country. 
Naples was entered. 

The French were anxious to obtain possession of the Grison 
country. At Ostrach and Stockach, Jourdan was defeated 
by the archduke Charles. A Russian army under Suvaroff" 
entered Italy, and in union with the Austrians defeated the 
French at Cassano, and drove them to Milan and Genoa. Al- 
exandria was taken, and the French, under Joubert and Mo- 
reau, were routed at Novi. Suvaroff marched into Switzer- 
land, where there had been some severe fighting. Korsakoff' 
had led another Russian army into that country. Massena, 
the French commander, attacked and defeated this last offi- 
cer, and Zurich was taken by storm. The Austrians in Italy 
reduced Coni, and invested Genoa. 

Bonaparte having reduced Egypt, turned his thoughts to 
Syria. General Regnier, with 12,000 men, was sent towards 
that country, ruled over by the sanguinary Jezzar, who was 
aided by Sir Sidney Smith, and some troops of the Porte. At 
Al-Arish, Regnier defeated a body of Mamelukes. Bonaparte 
soon joined the army; Al-Arish and Gaza surrendered: Jaffa 
was taken by storm. Acre was, as of old, gallantly defended 
by a Christian hero. Sir Sidney Smith, and Bonaparte was 
obliged to raise the siege, and return to Egypt. Desaix had 
been there engaged against the Mamelukes in Upper Egypt, 
and had driven them beyond the Cataracts. 

A Turkish army under the vizier having landed in Egypt, 
ind taken Aboukir, Bonaparte attacked and defeated them, 
and recovered the fort. Soon afterwards, seeing that nothing 
more was to be gained in Egypt, he secretly returned to 
France, leaving the command to Kleber, who defeated a 
Turkish divisi )n ; but his troops being in want of every thing, 
44 



A. D. 



518 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

he signed a convention with the vizier to quit the countiy. 
Lord Keith declared it should not be executed, and Kleber 
again attacked and defeated the Turks. 

The English, Austrians, and Neapolitans recovered the 
papal territories. The English and Russians landed in Hol- 
land ; but after obtaining some advantages over general Van- 
dan;me, they were obliged to negotiate a retreat. 

The joy of the directory at this success was damped by the 
.1 ppearance of Bonaparte. A revolution in the government 
was effected; it was made consular, and Bonaparte was 
chosen first consul, with Cambaceres and Le Brun for his 
colleagues. 

Affairs till the peace of Amiens. 

1800. Bonaparte, anxious to consolidate his power, made pacific 
overtures to England, which were rejected : the minister and 
the nation were bent on war. The long-sought union with 
Ireland was proposed this year, and in the following year car- 
ried into effect. 

The first consul resolved to prosecute the war with vigor. 
He joined the army assembled at Geneva, crossed Mont St. 
Bernard, and descended into Italy. The country to the Po 
was speedily subdued, and that river passed. Genoa had sur- 
rendered to the Austrians. The Austrian general Melas was 
defeated at-Montebello. On the plains of Marengo, between 
Alessandria and Tortona, the armies fought (June 14) again : 
victory seemed ready to declare for the Austrians, when the 
arrival of the divisions of Monnier and Desaix turned the for- 
tune of the day, and gave the first consul the glory of a con- 
queror. A truce, and the surrender of Genoa and other 
strong places, were the immediate result. 

In Germany, Moreau penetrated into Bavaria : a negotia- 
tion was ineffectually entered into ; the war recommenced, and 
the defeat of Hohenlinden (Dec. 3) led to the treaty of Lu- 
neville, by which Francis gave up more territory in Germany, 
and consented to the transfer of Tuscany to the duke of 
Parma. 
801. The fickle tsar Paul had been gained over by the French. 
He detained the ships of the English, and prevailed on Den- 
mark and Sweden to engage in an armed neutrality. The 
English, who considered their existence to depend on their 
maritime superiority, sent a large fleet to the Baltic, under 
Sir Hyde Parker, to break up the confederacy. The Danes 
were first attacked ; lord Nelson destroyed their line of de- 
fence before Copenhagen, and they sued for peace : the king 
of Sweden agreed to treat. The tsar Paul was murdered by 




Death of Nelson, at the Battle of Trafalgar 



519 



CHAP. Vm. FRENCH RE\'OLUTION AND EMPIRE. 521 

conspirators, and his son Alexander was inclined to Eng-land, 
The kinai" of Prussia, who had seized on Hanover, now de- 
clared himself ready to renev; his amity with Great Britain. 

An Enoflish army, under Sir Ralph Abercrombie, had ar- 
rived in Egypt. Immediately on its landing a battle ensued, 
which the English gained with the loss of their general. 
Grand Cairo surrendered. Its example was followed by 
Alexandria, and the French agreed to evacuate the country. 

Peace was signed at Amiens. The English consented to a d. 
give up all their conquests but Ceylon and Trinidad ; the 1602 
Ionian islands were to form a republic ; Malta to be restored 
to the knights. 

Affairs of Europe to the treaty of Tilsit. 

Bonaparte was now declared chief consul for life. He re- 
stored the Catholic religion, and gave new constitutions to 
France, Gnnoa, and Switzerland. A force was sent to St. 
Domingo, where Toussaint I'Ouverture, a negro, had erected 
a republic. That chief was treacherously seized and sent 
to France , out the French were unable fully to recover the 
island. 

Disputes arising respecting the fulfilment of the treaty of 1803. 
Amiens, tne war was resumed. Hanover was invaded and 
reduced by the French; Holland was dragged into the war, 
and immediately lost her colonies. In St. Domingo the 
French power was finally overthrown, and Dessalines made 1804. 
chief of the republic. 

Bonaparte at length ventured to assume the imperial dig- 
nity, and thp. princes of Europe mostly acknowledged their 
new associate, who insulted and domineered over the greater 
part of the continent. 

The following year, afler bestowing a new constitution on 1805. 
Holland, Napoleon made himself king of Italy, adding the 
Ligurian republic to his kingdom. This last act of injustice 
induced the emperors of Austria and Russia to enter into a 
confederacy with Great Britain, and the glorious victory 
gained by Nelson off Trafalgar (Oct. 21) over the combined 
fleets of France and Spain, gave spirits to the allies; but the 
French poured over the Rhine, and drove back the Austrians. 
At Ulm 20,000 Austrians surrendered. Vienna was entered 
by Napoleon : the Austrians and Russians were completely 
defeated at Austerlitz (Dec. 2). Francis lost courage, and 
concluded a treaty at Presburg, by which he gave up more 
territory, including Venice, acknowledged the king of Italy 
and two new kings, namely, those of Bavaria and Wiirten!^- 
burg 
• 44* 



522 



HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TIL 



The French invaded Naples, and Joseph Bonaparte was 
seated on the throne of that country. A victory was gained 
at Maida (July 4) by the English, and the Calabrians rose ; 
but the power of the usurper was too great for resistance. 
Holland was also made a kingdom for Louis Bonaparte. At 
the command of Napoleon, his two new German kings, and 
some other princes, detached themselves from the Germani 
body, and fornied the confederacy of the Rhine, in alliance 
with France. The king of Prussia, who had been encouraged 
*o seize Hanover, finding that in some late negotiations be- 
tween France and England its restoration had been offered, 
and otherwise disgusted with his friend the emperor, rushed 
precipitately into a war : he imprudently gave the chief 
command to the duke of Brunswick. The French advanced 
with rapidity. A Prussian army of 6000 men was defeated 
at Saalfeld. Near Jena and Auerstadt (Oct. 14) the Prussian 
and Saxon army of 110,000 men was attacked by that of the 
French of 150,000, and defeated. Erfurt was taken ; prince 
Hohenlohe and his army surrendered at Prentzlau : Berlin 
was entered. The king of Holland conquered to the Weser : 
Jerome Bonaparte subdued Silesia: general Bliicher and 
9400 men capitulated at Ratkau : the Poles were excited to 
rise. The Russians, who were now advancing, met and de- 
feated the French at Pultusk, and repulsed them at Golomyn. 
At Berlin, Bonaparte declared the British isles in a state of 
blockade, and, by what he called the continental system, pro- 
liibited all intercourse with them. 
A. D. The Turks now shared in the war. The Russian emperor 
^^'''- foolishly quarrelled with the Porte, and overran its nortliern 
provinces. An English fleet fruitlessly menaced Constanti- 
nople, and an ineffectual attempt was made on Egypt. 

The war was renewed in the north, and a desperate but 
indecisive battle was fought at Prussian Eylau ; Dantzig was 
taken by Lefcvre. The allies sustained a defeat at Friedland 
(June 14), which was followed by the capture of Konigsburg, 
and the treaty of Tilsit, which deprived the king of Prussia 
of one-third of his dominions, and erected the kingdom of 
Westphalia for Jerome Bonaparte. 

Affairs to the treaty of Vienna. 

An expedition, little creditable to England, was sent out 
against Denmark, a power with whom she was at peace. 
Copenhagen was bombarded, and all the ships and naval 
stores carried away. A rupture ensued between Russia and 
England. 
1808. 'i'lie demands made by France on the regent of Portugal 



CHAP. VIII. FRENCH REVOLUTION AND EMPIRE. 523 

were so unjust, that that prince, at the desire of the Britisn 
cabinet, departed for the Brazils. Portugal was occupied by 
the French. Intrigues were set on foot in Spain ; the king-, 
Charles IV., resigned in favor of his son Ferdinand. The a. d 
royal family were decoyed to Bayonne ; both father and son 1808 
were terrified into abdication, and the crown transferred to 
Joseph Bonaparte. Large bodies of troops had already been 
sent into Spain, and no opposition was dreaded ; but the peo- 
ple rose in all quarters, and proclaimed Ferdinand VII. : the 
French fleet at Cadiz was obliged to surrender, as also the 
army of Dupont at Baylen. Saragossa was heroically de- 
fended against the troops of Joseph, who at length raised the 
siege. 

The Portuguese rose also against the French. A British 
army landed and defeated the French general Junot at Vi- 
meiro (Aug. 21). By a convention made at Cintra, the 
French evacuated that kingdom. A Russian fleet was taken 
in the Tagus. 

In the north of Europe, Sweden was hard pressed by the 
Russians and Danes. The conduct of Gustavus bordering 
on insanity, he was the next year dethroned, and his uncle 
made king in his place. 

The French were victorious in Spain, defeating Blake at 
Reynosa, and Castanos at Tudela. Napoleon arrived, and 
Madrid was taken. An English army, under Sir John Moore, 
had advanced as far as Salamanca ; but it was forced to re- 
treat. At Corunna it was attacked (Jan. 16), and general -^^ 
Moore mortally wounded. 

Encouraged by the resistance made by the Spaniards, the 
emperor of Austria resolved anew on war : it commenced in 
Bavaria. Napoleon having driven back the Austrians at 
Eckmuhl, advanced rapidly and occupied Vienna. At Aspern 
and Essling, after dreadful slaughter on both sides, the victory 
remained with the Austrians, The battle of Wagram ter- 
minated in favor of the French. 

A most ill-conceived project of creating a diversion in Hol- 
land was formed by the British cabinet. An army of 39,000 
men, under the earl of Cathcart, sailed to Walcheren, and 
took Middleburg and Flushing ; but a large force being col- 
lected at Antwerp, and a fever breaking out among the troops, 
nothing further could be effected by such a waste of lives 
and treasure. 

The emperor Francis was now constrained to make peace, 
with additional loss of territory. In the preceding year, 
Selim III. had been murdered, and Mahmood, the present 



524 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III 

sultar, was seated on the Turkish throne. Peace was con- 
cluded between England and the Porte. 

Progress of the Peninsular War. 

The French were now masters of Spain to Old Castile. 
Saragossa had stood a second siege with less success than 
formerly, 20,000 of its defenders being said to have perished. 
Marshal Soult entered Portugal, and took Oporto. Sir A. 
Wellesley advanced against him, and drove him back into 
Spain. The Spaniards defeated marshal Ney at San Payo in 
Gallicia. Sir A. Wellesley entered Spain and defeated the 
French at Talavera de la Reyna (July 28) ; but the enemy 
being reinforced, and the co-operation of the Spaniards not 
to be depended on, he fell back. Gerona was taken by tht 
French, after a gallant defence. One Spanish army was de- 
feated at Ocana, and another at Alba de Tormes. 
A. D An army of 30,000 Portuguese was raised and paid by the 
18.0. British government. The French army approached Portugal, 
took Astorga and Ciudad Rodrigo, and, under Massena, passed 
the frontier and reduced Almeida. At the pass of Busaco 
they were repelled. A fortified line was made from the Tra- 
gus to the ocean, behind which ^he allies were posted. Mas- 
sena feared to assail it : after a month's inaction he fell back 
to Santarem. 

In the south Seville was taken by the French ; but Cadiz, 
now the seat of government, was secured against them. 

811. Massena at length commenced his retreat, closely followed 
by the allies. A sharp action occurred at Fuentes d' Honor, 
after which Almeida surrendered. Badajoz having been 
captured by Mortier, Sir W. Beresford laid siege to it. Soult 
advancing with 23,000 men to its relief, the combined armies 
of 26,000 gave him battle at the Albuera (May 16), and 
gained the honor of the day. The siege was resumed by 
Sir A. Wellesley, now lord Wellington ; but on the approach 
of Soult and Marmont he retired across the Tagus. In An- 
dalusia the French were defeated at Barrosa by genejal Gra- 
ham. They had the advantage in the north of Spain, and 
Tarragona, Murviedro, and Valencia fell into their hands. 

The revolution commenced this year in South America. 

812. A change having taken place in the government of Spain, 
the war was resumed with spirit. Lord Wellington reduced 
Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz. Salamanca also fell, and a de- 
cisive victory was gained (July 22) over Marmont in its 
vicinity. Madrid, Seville, Valladolid were recovered ; the 
French raised the siege of Cadiz ; but lord Wellington failed 
in an attack on Burgos. 




The Empress Josephine. 



425 



CHAP. VIII. FRENCH REVOLUTION AND EMPIRE. 527 

77ie Invasion of Russia, and fall of Najwleon. 

Alexander was mortified at the condition to which he wag a. ». 
reduced, and he defied Napoleon. The latter formed the bold l^i^ 
project of invading Russia : an immense army was assembled ; 
Tiithuania was occupied; Napoleon advanced to Smolensk; 
Oudinot and Macdonald were directed to join, and to g-et be- 
tween the great Russian army and St. Petersburg. The for- 
mer was defeated by Wittgenstein at Polotsk; prince Ba- 
gration engaged Davoust at Mohiloff; Wittgenstein com- 
pletely routed Oudinot a second time at Polotsk. 

Smolensk was abandoned to the enemy. At Borodino 
(Sept. 7) a general battle was fought, and the French re- 
pulsed with a loss of 40,000 men ; but Napoleon being rein- 
forced, pushed on for Moscow, and Kutusoff, the Russian 
commander, not feeling himself strong enough to contend 
with him, he reached that city, but found it in flames. Thus 
disappointed of supplies, he offered in vain to treat He then 
commenced his retreat. It was mid-winter ; the sufferings 
of the army were dreadful. The Russians closely pursued ; 
and of the immense host which had entered Russia, not more 
than 30,000, exclusive of the Anstrians, passed the frontiers. 
The dead and prisoners exceeded 300,000 in number. 

Alexander had already concluded a league with Sweden, 
whose councils were directed by the French marshal Berna- 
dotte, who had been chosen crown-prince. He now roused 
the king of Prussia to resistance. A treaty was formed be- 
tween them. The combined armies fought the new levies 
of Napoleon at Lutzen ; the action was indecisive, and they 1813 
were repulsed at Bautzen. A truce was made ; during its 
continuance the emperor of Austria joined the alliance, as did 
Sweden now openly. 

The allied army of 180,000 men was commanded by the 
Austrian prince Schwarzenburg. The battle of Katzbach, 
gained by the Prussian general Bliicher, delivered Silesia. 
An indecisive action took place at Dresden: Vandamme was 
defeated at Culm, and Ney at Juterbock. Napoleon concen- 
trated his forces at Leipzig, where (October 18) the allies 
attacked and totally defeated him. The city was taken : the 
king of Bavaria joined i^he league ; and his troops, combined 
with the Austrians, defeated, at Hanau, the French as they 
were retreating from Leipzig. Holland now flung off the 
yoke, and recalled the prince of Orange. At Frankfort the 
allied monarchs put forth a declaration of the justice and 
moderation of their views. 

In Spain, lord Wellington being reinforced, and now well 1813 



528 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART ITI. 

supported by tlie Spaniards, crossed the Douro, and marched 
northwards. At Vittoria (Jwne 21) he engaged and totally 
defeated the French army, commanded by marshal Jonrdan. 
Pampeluna was blockaded; St. Sebastian besieged ; marshal 
Soult in vain endeavored to check their progress. St. Seotis- 
tian fell, and the allies entered France. 
A. D France was now invaded north and south. The arnnes 
4814 from Germany met little check. Murat, the king of Naples, 
abandoned Napoleon. The allies appeared before Paris, and 
that haughty capital capitulated. In the south the allied arms 
were still crowned with success ; and Bourdeaux proclaimed 
Louis XVm. 

Napoleon was obliged to sign an act of abdication ; and the 
island of Elba, with a sufficient income, was assigned him for 
his residence. Louis XVIIL was restored ; as were the pope, 
and the other sovereigns who had been deprived of their do- 
minions. All Europe was now at peace. 
1816 While a congress was engaged in arranging the affairs of 
Europe, news arrived that Napoleon had left Elba, and landed 
in France. He was received everywhere with enthusiasm 
by the army, and Louis was obliged to quit France, and to 
seek a refuge in the Netherlands. The allied princes issued 
a strong manifesto, and large armies were assembled to op- 
pose the usurper. Some partial advantages attended his first 
operations; but on the field of Waterloo (June 18), his last 
battle was fought. The genius of Wellington and the steadi- 
ness of the British troops were triumphant. After a brief 
reign of 100 days, he fled to the sea-coast, where he surren- 
dered himself to a British naval commander : and six years 
afterwards, he who had lorded it over the nations expired a 
captive on a rock of the Atlantic. Louis XVIII. was recon- 
ducted to his capital by the allied armies, and firmly seated 
on his throne ; and the convulsions which had agitated Eu- 
rope for a quarter of a century at length terminated. 

After the destruction of the power of Napoleon, the allied 
sovereigns undertook to remodel difi^erent parts of Europe, and 
they proceeded to their object with what they deemed expe- 
diency in view, but with too little regard to popular feelings 
or to national and hereditary rights. Denmark was forced to 
yield Norway to Sweden, and take in exchange Rijigen and 
Pomerania ; and then to give these to Prussia, for Lauenburg. 
Prussia, always grasping, received a large portion of the do- 
minions of the king of Saxony, who had been guilty of the 
crime of fidelity to Napoleon. Austria extended her sway, 
now odious to the people, over the north of Italy. Genoa wag 
forced to submit to become a part of the dominions of the 




45 



529 



CHAP. VIII. FRENCH REVOLUTION AND EMPIRE. 531 

king- of Sardinia. The Netherlands and the United Prorinces 
were formed into a kingdom for the prince of Orange : a 
large part of Poland composed one for the emperor of Rus- 
sia. A new confederation for mutual defence, and the pre- 
vention of internal war, was entered into by the sovereign 
states of Germany, who promised representative constitutions 
to their subjects, — a promise which but few of them have 
kept. England, the choragus of the great drama which was 
now concluded, who had shed her blood, and lavished her 
treasure so unsparingly, remained covered with glory, but 
deeply immersed in debt She had, during this period, ex- 
tended her dominion over nearly the whole peninsula of In- 
dia ; and the realms, once ruled by the house of Timoor, now 
bow beneath her commercial sceptre. 

United States of America. 

During the wars which convulsed Europe, after the ac- 
complishment of their freedom, the Americans had been ad- 
vancing in a steady march of national prosperity. An attempt 
of the French directory to enlist them in their struggle with 
the other powers of Europe, led to a short war with France, 
which was not attended with any important consequences. 
The second president, John Adams, directed his efforts to the 
formation of a navy ; and two of the American frigates, the a. d. 
Constellation and Constitution, captured French frigates of 1799 
superior force, in the war with the republic. From this pe- 
riod a strict neutrality being observed, the Americans acquired 
most of the carrying trade of the belligerent powers in Eu- 
rope, and extended their commerce into every part of the 
world. Napoleon was the first to invade this privilege of the 1806 
Americans in the Berlin and Milan decrees, issued to prevent 
them from trading with Great Britain ; which were followed 
by the British orders in council, prohibiting them from inter- 
course with France. 

A farther cause of irritation against Great Britain, existed 
in the custom of searching American vessels on the ocean, 
and impressing from them British seamen. This was even i807 
carried so far, that the commander of a British frigate, the 
Leopard, after demanding four seamen from the American 
frigate Chesapeake, and being refused, fired a broadside into 
her, and compelled her commander, taken by surprise, to sur- 
render the men. Three of their number were Americans. 

The depredations of both the French and English on Anieri- 
can commerce, had become so extensive, that the congress, 
on the recommendation of the third president, Mr. Jefferson, 
ordered an embargo, prohibiting all commerce with foreign 



532 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART ITT. 

countries. This measure, however, being found to operate 
^ P too harshly on the interests of the commercial states of the 
809. union, tlie embargo law was repealed, and a non-intercourse 
with France and England was substituted. 

An offer was made on the part of the United States, that 
the non-intercourse s,hould be discontinued towards either 
France or England, as soon as they respectively should cease 
to violate the commerce of the republic. Napoleon's mmister 
having informed the American agent at Paris that the Berlin 
and Milan decrees were revoked, the non-intercourse law, as 
811. regarded France, was annulled. But as the official notice of 
this act was withheld, Great Britain, with good reason, doubted 
the revocation of the French decrees. When a formal an- 
nouncement of their revocation was made by France, the 
British orders in council were also revoked. But in the mean- 
time, the United States had declared war with Great Britain 
1812. (June 18), and as the questions of search and impressment 
were still unsettled, the war was continued, notwithstanding 
the revocation of the orders in council. 

Tiie first object of the United States was the conquest of 
Canada. General William Hull, with a force sufficient for 
the reduction of Upper Canada, passed into that province, 
but after wasting some time in parade and indecision, he sur- 
rendered his whole force, the fortress at Detroit, and the en- 
tire territory of Michigan, to the British. For this act, he 
was afterwards tried, sentenced to be shot, and pardoned. 

On the 19th of August, the American frigate Constitution, 
captain Hull, captured the British frigate Guerriere, reducing 
her to a complete wreck in 1-3 minutes. This was the first 
of a series of naval victories which have completely destroyed 
the proud claim of Britain to the empire of the ocean. Tt 
was speedily followed (Oct. 25), by the capture of the British 
frigate Macedonian, by the American frigate United States, 
under the command of captain Decatur, off the Western 
Isles. 

In November an attempt was made on Queenstown, in Up- 
per Canada, which, afler a severe action, and a heavy loss on 
both sides in killed and wounded, resulted in the capture of 
1000 Americans. 

In December, the frigate Constitution, captain Bainbridge, 
captured the British frigate Java, off the coast of Brazil, after 
an action of one hour, in which the Java was reduced to an 
unmanageable wreck. General Winchester, with 750 men, 
13 was attacked near the river Raisin, by a superior force of 
British and Indians, under general Proctor ; and afler being sur- 
rendered prisoners of war, many of his men were massacred 



CHAP. VIII. FRENCH REVOLUTION AND EMPIRE. 635 

by the Indians. (Jan. 22). An attack on fort Meig^, by Ihe 
British, was successfully resisted by general Harrison (May). 
An expedition against York, in LTpper Canada, under the 
command of general Pike, was completely successful. After 
an obstinate defence, the place was carried with a loss of 750 
on the British side. The heroic Pike was mortally wounded 
by the explosion of a magazine. Fort George and fort Erie 
were shortly afterwards taken by the Americans, after a brisk 
action. 

An attempt was made by the British naval force which 
blockaded the Chesapeake, on Norfolk; and, on its failure, 
Hampton, a village 18 miles from Norfolk, was taken and 
given up to rapine and plunder. 

The American frigate Chesapeake was captured by the 
British frigate Shannon, offBoston harbor, under circumstances 
which, fairly considered, tend materially to diminish the glory 
of the victory. Fort Sandusky was most ably defended against 
general Proctor, with 1200 British and Indians, by major 
Croghan, with 160 Americans. (Aug. 1). 

In September, the American fleet on lake Erie, under the 
command of captain Perry, captured the whole British squad- 
ron under captain Barclay, after a well-contested action of 
three hours. Detroit was soon after retaken, and a superior 
force of British and Indians, under general Proctor, routed 
by the Americans under general Harrison. The fortune of 
the day was decided by a mounted regiment under colonel 
Johnson, who slew with his own hand, during the action, the 
celebrated Indian warrior Tecumseh. 

Extensive preparations were made for renewing the inva- 
sion of Canada, during the autumn ; but the expedition was 
abandoned, apparently for want of concert among the leading 
officers, and fort George and fort Niagara fell into the hands 
of the British. 

Overtures of peace being made on the part of Great Britain, a.d 
commissioners on both sides were appointed to meet at Ghent 1^^* 
for the purpose of negotiating a treaty. 

A part of the district of Maine, east of Penobscot river, 
was occupied by the British. Naval victories were achieved 
by the American commanders. Porter, Warrington, and Bid- 
die, and the victories at Chippeway and Niagara witnessed 
the improved discipline and coolness of the American land 
forces. 

A British force landed from the fleet in the Chesapeake, 
and, conducted by general Ross, succeeded in penetrating to 
the city of Washington, where they destroyed the public 
buildings, library, and records ; a piece of vandalism which 



536 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TTT. 

has scarcely a parallel in modern warfare, and which one of 
their own ablest statesmen has pronounced a disgrace to the 
British nation. A subsequent attempt on Baltimore resulted 
in the defeat of the British, and the death of general Ross. 

The British squadron on lake Champlain, consisting of 17 
vessels, under the command of captain Downie, was defeated 
by the American squadron of 14 vessels, under captain 
M'Donough ; and on the same day, the British army under 
general Pre vest was repulsed, with heavy loss, in an attemp 
to storm the forts at Plattsburg. 
.815. Sir Edward Packenham, with 14,000 men, made a descent 
on New-Orleans, (Jan. 8), which was defended by genera] 
Jackson with six thousand men, principally militia. After a 
well-contested action, the British were repulsed with the loss 
of 700 killed, 1400 wounded, and 500 prisoners. The Ameri- 
can loss was 13 killed, 39 wounded, and 19 missing. 

The treaty of peace had been signed at Ghent, Dec. 24, 
1814, and ratified by the prince regent of England Dec. 28. 
It was ratified by the president of the United States, Feb. 
1815. 

From the events of this war, the Americans have learnt 
that their land forces are more fit for the resistance of inva- 
sion, than for foreign conquest; and that their best instru- 
ment of national defence is a well-disciplined navy: the same 
events have taught other nations, that this people, once sup- 
posed to be for ever wedded to commerce and peace, has some 
claims to a character for ability and courage in war. 



CHAP. IX. 

TIMES OF THE RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILLIPPE. 

State of Eurcype. 

The ideas of liberty and equality which had heen gene- 
rated by the French Revolution now began to progress 
towards their true development. The mass of the people 
were gradually becoming more enlightened, and in most of 
Europe, though they were compelled to suffer the existence 
of kings and nobility, they discussed more freely the cha- 
racter and tendency of monarchy and aristocracy. They 
had seen men, sprung from the humblest stations of life, 
achieve, by their own exertions, the proudest and most 
glorious actions, and had seen some of them sit upon the 




637 



CHAP. TX. RESTORATION ANT) LOUTS PIITLTPPE. 539 

thrones to which they had long believed their hereditary 
kings had a divine right. This, almost as much as the 
more extensive spread of education and refinement, broke 
the charm by Avhich they had so long been held, and made 
the seats of kings and nobility very unstable. Violent 
storms and short calms were the principal features of the 
time. 

France. 

The evils and distress produced by long and expensive 
wars were now apparent. Lyons and Grenoble were dis- 
tracted by riots, and conspiracies were detected in every 
quarter. The foreign troops left France, and at the Con- 
gress of Aix-la-Chapelle, she was admitted as a party to 
the Quadruple Alliance. In the mean time, the ministry 
was divided into factions, and continually involved in dis- 
sensions with the king. Disputes were 'frequent between 
the nobility, the chambers, and the people, and infringe- 
ments upon the liberty of the press and derangements in 
the administering of 'the laws were as constantly com- 
plained of by all whose rights were concerned. The royal- 
ists and the liberals were continually striving to advance 
the particular interests which they favored. The murder 
of the duke of Berri caused party spirit to rage beyond all 
bounds, and violent commotions occurred in the chamber 
of deputies. Laws were passed, authorizing the arrest of 
persons merely suspected of treason, the censorship of the 
press, and infringement of the election laws. In conse- 
quence of these acts, it was announced at the session of the 
chambers that conspiracy continually existed in France. 

In 1821, further restrictions of the press were proposed, but 
in consequence of the strength of the opposition, the ministry 
resigned. Several insurrections occurred during the year 
1822. A conspiracy was detected having for its°object the 
promotion of the interest of young Napoleon, and a few more 
insurrections occurred. 

In 1823, 100,000 men were sent into Spain to arrest the 
progress of democracy in that country, and to force its 
government to reconcile its sentiments to those of the other 
governments of Europe. The war terminated favorably for 
France, of which circumstance the king availed himself in 
order to gain some popularity with the army and the people. 
Though it lasted but six months, the expense was more 
than two hundred millions of francs, which caused loud 
complaints from the liberal party. 

In Septemb'}r, 1824, Louis XVIII. died. His brother 



540 Hir-TORT OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

Charles X., "became king, and was crowned at Rheims in 
May, 1826. The independence of Hayti was acknow- 
ledged and commercial intercourse established with the 
Spanish American republics, a treaty of commerce con- 
cluded with Great Britain and another with Brazil. The 
opposition gained a great triumph (1827) in defeating the 
bill for the further restriction of the press. The ministry 
dissolved the chamber with force, thereby hoping to secure 
a large majority at the next election. But the liberal party 
triumphed, and Paris was filled with rejoicings. 

France interfered (1828) in the dispute between Turkey 
and Greece, and sent a force to the assistance of the latter 
country. In the organization of a new ministry, (1829,) 
prince Polignac, an unpopular ultra-royalist, was intrusted 
with the portfolio of foreign afikirs. This hastened the 
crisis which had become inevitable. Though France was 
prosperous in her external appearance, yet the people were 
irritated beyond endurance by seeing their most valued 
liberties trampled upon and torn from them. 

At the opening of the session of the chambers, (1830,) the 
king announced his determination to maintain his policy, 
if necessary, by force of arms, and also announced the 
declaration of war against Algiers. The deputies being 
firm yet respectful in their declaration that concurrence no 
longer existed between the government and the nation, the 
chamber was prorogued. The new election produced a 
still stronger majority against the ministry. An ordinance 
being presented to the king by the ministry, which sus- 
pended the liberty of the press, several of the liberal 
journals refused to obey. This brought on the revolution 
of the Three Days. The king abdicated, and, at the invita- 
tion of the deputies, Louis Philippe of Orleans ascended 
the throne. Many alterations favorable to popular rights 
were made in the constitution, which Louis Philippe swore 
to maintain. The first event under his reign was the trial 
of the ministers of the late king for high treason. They 
were found guilty, and sentenced to imprisonment for life. 

Alarming riots occurred in Paris, (1830,) in consequence 
of an attempt to celebrate the anniversary of the assassina- 
tion of the duke of Berri. A change of ministers succeeded. 
Riots still occurred in Paris and Lyons, and in his tour 
through the kingdom, Louis Philippe found it in a condi- 
tion bordering on anarchy. War was declared against 
Portugal, but it was of short duration. Amid the frequent 
riots, the anniversary of the Three Days occurred, and it 
was celebr^,ted in the most splervdid manner. Fifty thou- 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 541 

sand men were sent to Belgium, to assist that country in 
its struggle with the Dutch. On the arrival of the news of 
the fall of Warsaw, riots broke out in every direction. 
Mobs attacked the hotels of the ministers, and revolution 
again threatened. But the army and the ministry con- 
tinuing loyal, concessions were made ana the danger 
averted. The most important acts of the assembly during 
its session were, the abolition of the hereditary peerage, an 
appropriation of a lai-ge sum for the relief of the working 
classes, and the perpetual banishment of the Bourbon and 
Napoleon families. Great distress among the workmen of 
Lyons produced an insurrection, which was suppressed by 
the duke of Orleans and marshal Soult. Measures were 
taken to relieve the workmen. 

In 1832, the difficulty with the United States was adjusted. 
The Asiatic cholera appeared and spread so rapidly that the 
chambers were obliged to adjourn, and the prime minister 
was attacked and died. The terror and distress caused by 
this disease could not suppress the spirit of insurrection. 
Riots occurred in Paris at the funeral of general Lamarque, 
and continued several days; being suppressed only with 
bloodshed. The expedition into Belgium and the war in 
Algiers both j)roving successful, rendered the government 
popular for a time with all classes. An attempt was made 
to assassinate the king, in November, but the person who 
made the attempt escaped in the crowd. 

The year 1833 was one of comparative calm. No out- 
breaks occurred, both parties contenting themselves with 
warring upon each other through the journals. Some of 
the leading members of the republican associations were 
arrested and tried for conspiracy, but found to be innocent 
of the charge. 

In March, 1834, the chamber of deputies annulled a 
treaty concluded in 1831, by the duke de Broglie and 
general Sebastiani with the American minister, by refusing 
to pay the indemnity to the United States for the injuries 
inflicted upon American ships and commerce. In conse- 
quence, the ministry was reorganized, under the presi- 
dency, how(;ver, as before, of marshal Soult. Manufactures 
and trade l^eing greatly depressed, serious riots occurred; 
first at Lyons and Marseilles, and then at Paris. In April 
a "-reaty was concluded at London, between Great Britain^ 
France, Spain and Portugal, which was commonly called 
the Quadrjple Alliance. A difficulty occurring between 
the king and marshal Soult, the latter resigned his post as 
president of the council, and was succeeded by marshal 
46 



542 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PART III 

Girard. The prisons were filled with persons accused of 
pai'ticipating in the various insurrections, and the number 
was so great that government was at a loss to know how 
to dispose of them. The president of the council was of 
opinion that an amnesty should be granted ; and that mea- 
sure being resisted by the king and other members of the 
council, the president resigned his post. The whole ministry 
was dissolved, and a new one formed, under the presidency 
of Maret, duke of Bassano. This lasted but four days, and 
gave place to the former one, under the presidency of 
marshal Mortier, with Guizot and Thiers as leading mem- 
bers. 

In February, 1835, a difference with the chambers was 
the cause of the dissolution of the ministry. Marshal Soult 
formed a new ministry, after a great deal of exertion, but it 
fell to pieces in four weeks. The deputies expressed a 
desire that the former ministers should resume their places, 
and the king assented, naming the duke of Broglie as pre- 
sident of the council and minister of foreign affairs. In 
April, the chamber of deputies acknowledged the validity 
of the American claims, and made no further difficulty in 
providing for their payment. Of about 1200 prisoners held 
for being concerned in the riots, only 164 were tried. The 
trials lasted till the middle of August, when 52 were sen- 
tenced to imprisonment for life, and the Paris prisoners 
escaped from the place where they were confined. 

In July, at the anniversary of the Revolution of 1830, 
while the king was reviewing the troops of the line and the 
national guards, an " infernal machine'^ exploded near 
where the king was standing, killing forty persons, among 
whom was marshal Mortier. The king escaped without 
injury. The assassin was arrested, and, with two accom- 
plices, executed. Attempts were made by the ministry to 
strengthen the power of the king, by presenting to the 
chambers three laws for their approval. One almost anni- 
hilating the liberty of the press, another allowing the jurors 
to vote by ballot, and a third empowering the minister of 
justice to constitute as many courts of assize as may be 
necessary to proceed simultaneously against rioters. The 
laws were sanctioned by the chambers after much opposi- 
tion. 

In 1836, the trial of the Paris insurgents was concluded, 
and nineteen or twenty condemned to be transported for 
life. A deficit occurring in the revenue, a difficulty was 
brought about between the king^ and the deputies. The 
result was the resignation of the ministry, in February. /V. 




543 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 545 

oew one was formed under the presidency of Thiers. In 
June, a third attempt was made upon the life of Louis 
Philippe. He was shot at as he was leaving the Tuileries 
in his carriage. No injury was done, and the assassin, an 
enthusiastic young republican, was tried by the peers, and 
guillotined on the 11th of July. The new ministry was 
very active, and their policy was of a bolder tone than the 
preceding one. But a difficulty soon ensued between the 
king and his ministers, and Thiers and five of the others 
resigned. In September, a new ministry was formed, with 
count Mole as president and minister of foreign affairs. ' 
They endeavored to tranquillize the public mind at home 
and maintain friendly relations abroad. The ministers of 
Charles X. who had been imprisoned, were set at liberty. 
In October, Louis Napoleon Bonaparte made an attempt at 
insurrection at Strasburg, but having few followers, he was 
taken and shipped off to America. The other conspirators 
were arraigned before the court of assize of the Lower 
Rhine, but the jury refused to convict them. In December, 
another attempt was made upon the life of Louis Philippe 
by a workman named Meunier. The king narrowly es- 
eaped. Meunier was brought to trial and banished for ten 
years. 

In January, 1837, the ministry made new attempts to 
fortify the executive branch of the government. Several 
measures, with that object, were rejected by the chamber 
of deputies. The ministry were divided upon the pro- 
priety of a dissolution of the chamber, and Guizot and three 
others resigned their places. A new organization took 
place, but it was far from satisfactory. In the course of 
the summer, an improvement took place in the affairs of 
the French in Algiers, and the course of events in Spain 
appeared more propitious. The chamber of deputies still 
continuing at variance with the ministry, it was dissolved 
on the 4th of October. The government had expectations 
that the newly elected chamber would be more favorable to 
them than the other had been, but its expectations were 
disappointed. They met in December, but nothing impor- 
tant occurred. 

In February, 1838, a measure was presented by a liberal 
member, for reducing the interest on the public debt, which 
was adopted. The government sustained a defeat of the 
nleasures which they recommended. Another plot to 
destroy the king's life was discovered, and the person in 
whose hands the machine that was to do the work was 
found, was tried and sentenced to deportation. The minis- 
46* 



546 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART in. 

try pursued a very dictatorial course towards some of the 
weaker sovereign states. Prince Louis Napoleon had re- 
turned from America to Europe, and published a pamphlet 
under an assumed name, setting forth his claims to the 
throne of France. The person whose name he had assumed 
was arrested and condemned to imprisonment for five years, 
and to pay a heavy fine. The government then demanded 
of the Swiss confederacy the expulsion of the prince from 
their territory, where he had taken refuge on his return. 
The Swiss were not disposed to yield to the demand, and 
hostilities would have commenced had not prince Louis 
voluntarily quit Switzerland. War was declared against 
Mexico, and the republic of La Plata. The ministry met 
with the most strenuous opposition in most of their mea- 
sures, and Guizot and Thiers, at the head of their respective 
parties, exerted themselves to effect its overthrow. 

In January, 1839, the ministry thought it prudent to 
retire before the storm would break upon them, and they 
resigned their places. Marshal Soult was commissioned to 
organize a new ministry ; but he declared it impossible 
without the ministry could comprehend Theirs. The king 
would not agree to that, and recalled his former ministers, 
and dissolved the chamber of deputies. The appeal to the 
electors was unsuccessful; the opposition triumphed, and 
count Mole and his colleagues once more resigned. (March 
9th). For two months, the greatest confusion pervaded 
every department of the government. A ministry could 
not be organized till the middle of May, when marshal 
Soult was prevailed upon to accept the J>^t of president of 
the council and minister of foreign anairs. The council 
was composed of widely different elements ; the only thing 
they could agree upon to keep them together was the non- 
action upon all the questions of difference between the 
parties which divided the chambers and the country. In 
consequence, nothing of moment occurred during the legis- 
lative session, which ended in August. On the re-assem- 
bling of the chambers in December, the state of French 
aff'airs in Africa and Syria, and the feeble and uncertain 
policy of the ministers, produced great embarrassment. In 
the course of a month, the government found themselves in 
a minority on a question of appropriation of 500,000 francs 
to the duke of Nemours, on his marriage. 

In February, 1840, the ministers resigned their places, 
and the king found a council decidodly liberal his only 
resource for carrying on the government. Thiers was ap- 
pointed president of the council and minister of foreign 



OH A 1. IX. RESTORATION A jfD LOUIS PHILIPPE.. 547 

affairs, and the rest of the ministry were of the same party. 
Great expectations were entertained by the people in regard 
to the new ministry, but they were disappointed. The 
measures and policy of the ultra-royalists who had pre- 
ceded them were continued. The severe laws against the 
liberty of the press, and the narrow confinement of the 
right of suffrage, were not attempted to be repealed or 
modified. The reduction of the interest on the public debt 
was rejected by the peers. A considerable sum was ap- 
propriated by the chambers during the session, for the con- 
struction of railroads and steam vessels ; and another, of 
1,000,000 francs, for the purpose of bringing the remains 
of Napoleon from St. Helena, to be interred with great 
pomp and ceremony in the capital of his former empire. 
Towards the close of the session, Thiers made great efforts 
to induce the great European powers to allow the pasha of 
Egypt to retain possession of Syria ; but he failed in accom- 
plishing his object. The other powers of Europe concluded 
a treaty among themselves, without waiting for the acqui- 
escence of France. The announcement of this treaty pro- 
duced the greatest excitement in France, and war was 
generally demanded. The army and navy were augmented, 
and great activity prevailed at all the ports and arsenals 
of the country. In the mean time, events occurred which 
prevented the king from assenting to the design of declaring 
war against four of the great powers of Europe. One was 
the landing of Louis Napoleon Bonaparte at Boulogne, with 
the hope of producing a revolution in his favor. No one 
joined him, and he was arrested and imprisoned in the 
fortress of Ham. The other was the fifth attempt to as- 
sassinate the king. He was fired at with a musket loaded 
with six balls, while reviewing the national guard, in Octo- 
ber, but, as before, escaped all injury. The assassin was 
injured by the bursting of the gun, and afterwards was 
guillotined. The king's being unwilling to denounce the 
treaty by which France had been dishonored, was the cause 
of the resignation of Thiers and his colleagues. A new 
ministry was organized, with marshal Soult as its presi- 
dent, and Guizot as minister of foreign affairs, and deci- 
dedly the most influential member. This ministry was 
well supported and gradually gained the confidence of the 
nation. The emperor Napoleon's remains arrived in France 
in December, and the deposition of them in the dome of the 
Invalids produced far less excitement than expected. 

"the year 1841 opened with brilliant prospects for the 
new ministry. The plan for the fortification of the city ot 



548 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TH. 

Paris "w^as submitted to the chambers and approved in 
February. The object of tlie ministry was the preservation 
of the peace of Europe, as they proclaimed, and their policy 
was systematically directed to that end for the rest of their 
term of service as a council. The most important events 
which occurred between the close of the session of the 
chambers in June, and their assembling in December, were 
the tumults at Toulouse and other places in the South, on 
occasion of a new assessment of taxes, which were promptly 
quelled by a militarj'^ force; an unsuccessful attempt on the 
lives of three of the king's sons, for which the guilty Avas 
condemned to deportation ; and the diminution of the army 
by about 100,000 men. 

In April, 1842, Hermann, the minister of finance died, 
and was succeeded by Lacave-Saplagne ; but the policy of 
the administration continued precisely as before. In May, 
while the deputies were discussing a law authorizing the 
construction of nine hundred leagues of railroad, a shock- 
ing accident occurred on the railroad between Paris and 
Versailles, by which two hundred persons lost their lives, 
among whom was the circumnavigator, Dumont d'Urville, 
and his family. The passage of the law, however, was not 
prevented by this accident. The duke of Orleans, heir ap- 
parent to the throne, was thrown off the carriage in which 
he was riding and killed. This caused much discussion in 
the chamber of deputies in regard to the regency, in case 
of the death of the king before the count of Paris should 
become of age. It was finally decided that the duke of 
Nemours, who was personally unpopular, should be the 
regent. For three or four years after the settlement of this 
question, France remained comparatively calm; the Guizot 
ministry growing stronger every day, maintaining peace 
with the rest of Europe, and developing the resources of 
the nation. The only events of importance that occurred 
were the taking of the Marquesas and Society Islands in 
the Pacific Ocean, and the interchange of visits between 
Louis Philippe and queen Victoria. The latter is some- 
thing anomalous in French history. After the short calm, 
the factions resumed their disputes; and, with the aid of 
the clubs and an ultra-democratic press, they kept the 
populace of Paris in a constant excitement. On the part 
of the king, either from necessity or the desire of power, 
the 'principles which he had recognised in 1830 were violated 
and disowned by him. Great efforts were made by the 
ministry to give as much power to the king as was possible 




Andrew Jt k en 



649 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 551 

This, and the spread of the socialist and communist prin- 
ciples, hastened the progress of things to a crisis. 

Great Britain. 

The peace of 1815 found the poorer classes, particularly 
those inhabiting the manufacturing districts, in a state of 
destitution. Extensive failures of the crops in 1816 and 
1817 increased the distress to such an extent that in June, 
1819, serious riots broke out through a large extent of 
country. These were followed by mass meetings, at which 
radical measures of reform were proposed and advocated 
by popular speakers. The government interfered, and at 
Manchester, a large mob was dispersed and many persons 
killed. This increased the excitement. Parliament forbade 
the keeping of fire-arms by the populace, private military 
exercise, the unauthorized assembling of*mass meetings, 
and the publication of inflammatory or irreligious writings. 

The death of George III., in January, 1820, was produc- 
tive of very little change in the social condition of the 
nation. The return of agricultural prosperity, the increase 
of the foreign demand for manufactures, and the renewal 
of specie payments alone caused discontent to subside. A 
conspiracy to assassinate the ministers, of which Arthur 
Thistlewood was the leader, was detected soon after the 
return of prosperity, and Thistlewood executed. 

The disgraceful trial of the queen tended to exasperate 
all classes and parties. But the pursuing malice of her 
enemies was arrested by her death in August, 1821, and 
the king, George IV., regained a portion of his former 
popularity by making a tour through the country. But 
the diminution of one evil only increased another. By in- 
creasing the value of money, parliament had decreased the 
value of every thing else. Bents rose, and thousands of the 
peasantry, of Ireland especially, were unable to pay their 
landlords. Ireland was already torn by social and religious 
differences, and it now became a prey to riots, secret mur- 
ders, and every species of violence. Nor has its condition 
materially improved up to the present time. 

During the Greek struggle for independence, the subjects 
of Great Britain were allowed to aid the patriots, and many 
availed themselves of the privilege. In 1825, the nation- 
ality of the new American republics was acknowledged^ 
and, during the same year, the king prohibited the formei 
privilege of assisting the Greeks. The year 1826 was sig- 
nalized by mammoth schemes of speculation, followed by a 
sudden collapse, and ruinous bankruptcies. Bank after 



552 -^ HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

Dank broke, the currency became disordered, and the con- 
sequent distress was so great that it called for the imme- 
diate interposition of government. The same year, Great 
Britain united with Russia to induce or compel Turkey to 
acknowledge the freedom of Greece ; and, in the next year, 
the treaty of London, for the settlement of that question, 
was concluded between Great Britain, Russia, and France. 
In 1829, the Catholic Relief Bill was passed, which, in a 
great degree, removed the civil disabilities from the Roman 
Catholics. In June, 1830, George IV. died, and was suc- 
ceeded by his brother, William IV. In 1831, after the 
Whigs came into power, the Reform Bill, regulating parlia- 
mentary representation, was passed. 

The first session of the reformed parliament was opened 
on the 29th of January, 1833, and brought to a close on the 
29th of the following August. Among its most important 
acts, were two, regulating the juries and the clergy of Ire- 
land, together with the "Irish coercion act," which im- 
posed stringent regulations upon the inhabitants of that 
country. The act for the abolition of slavery in the West 
India colonies was also passed — twenty millions of pounds 
being granted to the proprietors as an indemnification. The 
charter of the East India Company was renewed for the term 
of twenty years, under certain restrictions. The second 
session under the new Reform Bill was occupied with the 
afi"airs of Ireland, where much disorder continued to prevail. 
The king, being opposed to the changes introduced by the 
Whigs, dismissed the ministry, and engaged Sir Robert 
Peel to form another. But the Whigs kept the favor of the 
nation and a majority in parliament. The new ministry, 
therefore, kept their places but a short time. They resigned 
their places, and Viscount Melbourne was employed, and 
succeeded in forming a ministry which continued during 
the rest of the reign of William. The most important acts 
passed during the remaining two years of the reign were — 
one reforming the municipal corporations; the marriage 
act, which permitted marriage by any ceremony that the 
parties preferred, or merely before a magistrate; an act for 
the registering of births, deaths, and marriages, and regula- 
tions respecting Canada and Ireland. 

On the 20th of June, 1837, the king died. William was 
succeeded by his niece, Alexandrina Victoria, under the 
title of Victoria I. . She was in her nineteenth year. The 
immediate consequence of the accession of a female to the 
throne, was the separation of Hanover from the rest of the 
kingdom, and its retrocession to the male line of the family. 



CHAP. IX. EESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 553 

The queen found Canada in revolt; Ireland in agitation; 
England discontented ; parties exasperated ; and every other 
cause of disorder aggravated by the movements of the Re- 

Eeal Associations, organized and conducted by O'Connell. 
lOrd Durham was appointed governor-general of Canada, 
and given almost dictatorial powers. Bills for the relief ot 
Ireland were passed. But discontent was not suppressed. 
In 1808, a large portion of the population banded themselves 
together under the name of Chartists, claiming the adop- 
tion, as fundamental law, of a charter, which would grant 
universal suffrage, vote by ballot, annual parliaments, the 
abolition of property qualifications in members of the House 
of Commons, and their remuneration by money. The same 
year, the Anti-Corn-Law League was formed, the members 
of which strenuously advocated the doctrines of free trade. 
The influence of these two associations has been felt se- 
riously in England to the present day. 

On the 10th of February, 1840, queen Victoria married 
prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, to whom parliament 
voted thirty thousand pounds. Soon after this event, diflS.- 
eulties occurred with the United States, with the Afghans, 
and with the Chinese. The latter occurred in consequence 
of the efforts by the Chinese to suppress the illicit intro- 
duction of opium into their empire by British vessels. 
Collisions between the natives and the English followed, 
and war was soon declared. Sir Henry Gough, the English 
commander, after various triumphs over the Chinese, ap- 
peared before the city of Nankin, when a treaty of peace 
was concluded, (August, 1842.) Great Britain received 
twenty-one millions of dollars, the island of Hong Kong, 
and admission into several Chinese ports. In the same 
year, the difficulties with the United States and with Af- 
ghanistan were settled by treaty. 

The Melbourne ministry continued under Victoria till 
1841, when it lost the confidence of parliament, and a new 
ministry was formed, with Sir Robert Peel at its head. 
The parliamentary session of 1842 was distinguished by the 
enactment of a new corn-law, in which the duties previously 
imposed were in some degree reduced. In 1843 the Free 
Church of Scotland was instituted, byabout four hundred 
clergymen, who would no longer submit to civil interven- 
tion in religious affairs. In Ireland, affairs had reached a 
crisis, and O'Connell, with a number of the leading re- 
pealers, was arrested. After trial, O'Connell was sentenced 
to imprisonment for twelve months, to pay a fine of two 
thousand pounds, and to give sureties in the sura of ten 
47 



554 fflSTORY OF THE WORLD. PART Tli. 

thousand pounds to keep the peace for seven years. In 
1844, this decision of the judges was reversed by the House 
of Lords. The Peel ministry continued in office until 
December, 1845, when a difference occurring among ita 
members, lord Wellington resigned his post, and he was 
followed by the entire cabinet. But from the difficulty of 
organizing another. Sir Kobert Peel was again called to 
resume his office. In 1846, the Oregon treaty was concluded 
with the United States, and the British corn-laws were 
repealed. The most important events of the year 1847 
were the distress and agitation in Ireland, the war in India, 
the efforts to repress the disorders in Canada, and the ten- 
dency of the masses towards the causes which produced the 
convulsions of the following year. 

Spain. 

For six years after his restoration, Ferdinand VII. pur- 
sued a career of absolute despotism. The officers and sup- 
porters of Joseph Bonaparte were driven from the country 
or thrown into prison ; the Inquisition Avas re-established ; 
monkish tyranny resumed its sway, and every, form of 
justice or of popular right was openly violated. This head- 
Ion;;; course of blind bigotry was the cause of violent com- 
motions. The army became discontented ; bands of guerillas 
ravaged different quarters; and various conspiracies were 
formed, either for petty revenge or the overthrow of the 
government. While growing weaker at home, the govern- 
ment was rendering itself contemptible abroad. In 1820, 
Florida was ceded to the United States for five millions of 
dollars. The ministry was changed twenty-five times in 
five years. During this period, the American colonies re- 
volted, and an attempt to send an army against them was 
attended by the defection of four battalions, who chose their 
own leaders, proclaimed the constitution of 1812, and took 
possession of La Caracca. The attempts made to dislodge 
them failed; and advancing through the country, they ex- 
cited a spirit of revolt among the people, and called upon 
them to re-establish the constitution. They were joined by 
the royal troops ; so that Ferdinand, as contemptible for his 
weakness as he was odious for his tyranny, declared him- 
^-elf willing to summon the Cortes of 1812, and submit to 
Jie constitution of that year. A new ministry was ap- 
pointed, the Inquisition abolished, and an entire change 
effected in the offices of the government. But the country- 
was torn by factions, and these popular victories failed tc 
restore peace. 




The Emperor of China. 



555 



CHAP. IX. REBTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 557 

In March, 1821, the cortes declared the whole country 
in danger. In September, an extraordinary cortes was 
summoned, and about the same time, news was received 
that Mexico had declared herself independent, that Lima 
was occupied by the Chilians, and that other losses had 
occurred in the West Indies, The troubles abroad quieted, 
in some degree, the dissensions at home. The king sanc- 
tioned a few vigorous measures passed by the cortes ; but 
they did not render the Spanish arms successful in America, 
nor increase the popularity of Ferdinand. Military riots 
occurred, even in the royal palace; and an attempt to 
restore despotism by overthrowing the constitution, was 
defeated by the national guards. A new ministry, favor- 
able to liberal principles, was appointed, and the king, 
whose authority was now extremely weak, made every 
concession demanded of him. Not long after, the apostoli- 
cal party favorable to despotism and monkish rule was 
defeated, and its leaders driven from the country. The 
other European poAvers interfered ; and the French ambas- 
sador at Madrid demanded the restoration of Ferdinand to 
power, pi-eparatory to his effecting permanent arrangements 
with the people. The ministers of Prussia, Austria, and 
Russia made similar demands ; while England advised the 
cortes to yield, offering her mediation. The Spanish go- 
vernment answered in a note, indignantly repelling the 
foreign interference. The French stationed 100,000 men 
near the Pyrenees, from whence they marched towards 
Madrid, proclaiming that they came to deliver the country 
from the evils of civil war. 

Ferdinand, who had entailed wretchedness upon the 
nation, was now passive. The French declared the sove- 
reignty of the king, and nullified all the acts of the cortes. 
War being declared against France, Ferdinand prosecuted 
it with his usual weakness, vacillation, and blindness. In a 
short time, his army of 120,000 men was beaten, and the 
greater part of the country in the hands of the French. A 
guerilla warfare succeeded, which was conducted with all 
the circumstances of crime and barbarity usually attendant 
upon a desultory warfare. In June, the theatre of war was 
transferred to the southern provinces. On the 15th of July, 
the heights of Corunna were carried by general Bourck 
after a bloody action of five hours. Skirmishes occurred 
from time to time until the 1st of October, when Ferdinand, 
under the protection of the French, returned to the capital. 
His first act was declaring the proceedings of the provi- 
sional cortes void. In November, the war terminated. 
47* 



558 HISTOllY OF THE WORLD. PART III 

Forty-fi\ e thousand French soldiers remained in Spain until 
the national army could be organized. The defeated re- 
publicans were imprisoned and executed in great numbers, 
feut the re-establishment of the Inquisition was successfully 
resisted. 

As the king was suspected of being favorable to the con- 
stitutionalists, some of the adherents of despotism formed a 
plot to displace him and raise Don Carlos to the throne. 
These were called Carlists. They caused much disturb- 
ance during the three following years ; and, with the fre- 
qaent change of ministers and the conduct of the king, were 
the source of much distress among the people. In 1825, 
Spain lost the castle of St. J t-iu'i ^3 UUoa, and early in the 
next year, Callao, near Limn -iiei last possession on the 
American continent. In 1829, the army in Mexico sur- 
rendered to the patriots, under general Santa Anna. The 
same year was signalized by the birth of a royal princess, 
on which occasion the cortes declared the crown hereditary 
in the female lines. But two years after, while Ferdinand 
was suffering from a violent attack of sickness, Calomarde, 
the minister, induced the weak monarch to revoke the 
decree, and transfer the right of succession to Don Carlos. 
The king recovered unexpectedly, and Calomarde was dis- 
missed. The right of succession was restored to the infanta 
Maria Isabella, and her mother appointed regent of the 
kingdom. 

Ferdinand died in 1833. This brought on civil war, 
which was commenced by Don Carlos, who claimed the 
throne, and continued with variable success, until 1839. 
Through the energy of the queen's generalissimo, Don 
Baldomera Espartero, it resulted in her favor. In the mean 
time, the court was in a distracted condition. Ministers 
resigned almost as soon as they were installed. The regency, 
the Carlists, and the queen's adherents struggled for the 
mastery. The constitution of 1812 being adopted under a 
modified form in 1837, revived the old constitutional party, 
w^hich was again divided by the secession of the extreme 
liberals. In 1840, the queen regent resigned, and her office 
fell upon the new minister, Espartero. He displayed the 
same energy which had distinguished him on the battle- 
field. Charges of cruelty while suppressing the insurrec- 
tionists were soon brought against him, and they affected 
his popularity. Quarrels with the cortes and the new 
ministry followed, and in 1843 he was driven from the 
country. In October of the same year, the young queen 
attained her majority, and was acknowledged as queen of 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUTS PHILIPPE. 559 

Spain by all the European powers under the title of Isa- 
bella II. A new and more aristocratic constitution wa8 
adopted, and a new ministry formed under general Narvaez, 
the great opponent of Espartero. Since that time, Spain 
has enjoyed an unusual degree of tranquillity — only broken 
by an occasional quarrel of the factions that continue to 
exist, the intrigues of the minister, or the childish squabbles 
of Isabella and her royal consort. 

Portugal. 

_ Soon after arriving in his kingdom from his long exile in 
Brazil, the Portuguese monarch swore to maintain the new 
constitution. By this were secured freedom of person and 
of property, the liberty of the press, legal equality, the 
abolition of privileges, the admission of all citizens to any 
office, and national sovereignty. Several attempts at insur- 
rection Avere suppressed, and in 1823, the different depart- 
ments of government were re-organized. In the mean time, 
Brazil had separated from the parent country; and the 
queen and several of the nobility formed a plot to over- 
throw the government. Dom Miguel, with a party of 
nobles and officers, declared against the cortes, and general 
Sepulveda attempted to carry off the king. The army 
joined the malcontents, and the king was compelled to 
name a new ministry and to nullify the constitution of 
1822. The king was then requested to resume absolute 
power, the promotion of which was declared to be the 
object of the counter-revolution. He refused, and propo- 
sals were made for drafting a new constitution, but they 
were opposed by the queen, assisted by French influence. 
The king still adhering to the system of moderation and 
liberalism, the queen resolved to annihilate it at a single 
blow. 

On the 30th of April, 1824, Dom Miguel put himself at 
the head of the army, and declared his intention to com- 
plete what he had begun before. On the same day, more 
than a hundred ministers and officers were arrested, and 
none allowed access to the king. The foreign ambassadors 
protested against this violence, but Dom Miguel declared 
that his object was to frustrate a conspiracy which aimed 
at the lives of the king and queen. The king ordered the 
troops to retire, and the release of the imprisoned persons. 
But the infant issued orders on his own authority, and the 
king was kept in a condition little better than imprison, 
oient. The foreign ambassadors interfering, John, with his 
two daughters, and the diplomatic corps, was secretly con- 



560 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

veyed on board an English ship, where he summoned the 
infant to his presence. The prince obeyed, confessed that 
he had been deceived, and was pardoned. Soon after, the 
king returned ashore and resumed his liberal policy ; but 
his designs were baffled by Spanish intrigue, which revived 
the opposition of the queen and the bigoted patriarch of 
Lisbon. Conspiracies were detected^ and several changes 
of ministers occurred. 

On the 13th of November, 1825, the independence of 
Brazil was acknowledged^ and four months after, the king 
died. In April, 1826, a new constitution was granted, by 
which the cortes was divided into two chambers. In May, 
Dom Pedro offered the throne to his daughter, Donna Maria, 
on condition of her marrying her uncle Miguel. But, by 
the assistance of Spain, a party had already been formed 
to overthrow the new constitution and proclaim Dom Miguel 
king. Aramante and the mai'quis- of Abrantes headed 
the insurgents, while a Spanish arnay assembled on the 
frontier. An appeal being made to England, 15,000 British 
troops were landed at Lisbon, and in a short time the in- 
surrection waa suppressed. Next year, Dom Miguel was 
appointed regent. His arrival from Vienna in 1828 occa- 
sioned another insurrection, the object of which was to 
place him on the throne. At the same time^ the officers of 
the garrisons favorable to the liberal policy were removed, 
and an arrangement made for sending Dom Miguel to Villa 
Vicosa, where he might be proclaimed king while protected 
by Aramante's troops. This scheme was frustrated by the 
energy of Mr. I^imb, the British minister. The order for 
the departure of the English troops was counteracted, and 
prevented the payment of the loan made to Dom Miguel 
under the guarantee of the British government. Subse- 
quently, when the troops were withdrawn, the prince svic- 
ceeded in crushing the constitutional party. Miguel directed 
all his efforts towards consolidating his own power, and the 
only means he employed was cruelty. The prisons were 
filled with his late opponents, and the roads were crowded 
with fugitives, flying from home and their country. The 
cortes declared him lawful king of Portugal. 

In 1830, the number of prisoners confined for political 
causes had svrelled to 40,000, and the other countries of 
Europe were filled with Portugueae refugees. By his arbi- 
trary acts, the king drew upon him the opposition of Great 
Britain, which sent a fleet to the Tagus in 1831, which 
forced from him some humiliating concessions. Two months 
after a S'rench fleet appeared in that river, and demanded 




Thomas Jefferson. 



661 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 563 

redress for injuries committed by the Portuguese on French 
subjects. All the demands of the French were submitted 
to. Soon after an insurrection occurred, which was only 
suppressed with bloodshed. Meanwhile, Dom Pedro was 
preparing an expedition whose object was the expulsion of 
his brother and the promotion of his own daughter, Donna 
Maria da Gloria, to the throne. 

On the 8th of July, 1832, Dom Pedro landed at Oporto, 
and seizing that city, maintained it against the efforts of 
the opposite faction. In July, 1833, the fleet of Dom Miguel 
was totally defeated off Cape St. Vincent by Sir Charles 
Napier, and in the same month his army was routed by the 
count da Villaflor. Lisbon was speedily reduced, and Dom 
Pedro assumed the government in the name of his daughter. 
The Miguel faction was still in arms, and its forces led by 
general Bourmont, a Frenchman. This leader made a des- 
perate attempt to carry the city of Oporto, but being 
repulsed, his forces retired to two strong fortresses, where 
they would have protracted the war, but for the union of a 
Spanish army with the queen's troops. On the 26th of 
May, 1834, Dom Miguel signed a capitulation, by virtue of 
which he abandoned Portugal. The cortes re-established 
the constitution of 1826, and gave their sanction to his 
holding the regency. When order was in some degree 
restored, Dom Pedro suddenly died. His death gave rise to 
dissensions between the queen and her faithful ministers, 
in consequence of which marshal Saldanha, a democratic 
leader, became prime minister. The object of this appoint- 
ment was to gain favor with the masses; but it failed. 
Saldanha lost his former influence, and factions became 
more violent than ever. In March, 1835, the queen's hus- 
band died. In April, 1836, she married duke Ferdinand 
of Saxe-Coburg-Cohary, who was disliked both by the cortes 
and the people, and new troubles were the consequence. 

Five months after the second marriage of the queen, an 
insurrection occurred, which was joined in by the troops, 
and the queen was compelled to dismiss her ministers. The 
constitution of 1822 was again proclaimed. Lisbon was 
ruled by the national guard and the clubs, which sup- 
pressed all counter-revolutionary efforts. The new constitu 
tion was constructed principally upon democratic principles. 
Difficulties occurred with England and Spain, which occa- 
sioned the dissolution of the cortes, and the organization of 
another, which speedily came to terms with the British 
government. In 1841, Russia, Prussia, Austria, and the 
pope acknowledged the title of Donna Maria, which con 



564 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

tributed to give stability to her throne. Early in 1842, the 
friends of the late Dom Pedro, aided by the troops at Lisbon, 
effected an overthrow of ministers, and restored the guardians 
of the queen, vrho had been appointed by the late regent. 
These were the duke of Ferceira and Costa Cabral. Under 
their management, a new treaty was concluded with Eng- 
land, the public expenditure lessened, additional taxes 
imposed, and the number of the cortes lessened. Some of 
these measures being found oppressive, the people strove to 
prevent their execution by plots and insurrections. The 
most formidable of these occurred at Torres Novas, in 
February, 1844. The insurgents, mostly of the army, 
seized the fortress of Almeida. This was besieged by the 
government troops, and captured after an obstinate resist- 
ance. Civil war continued to distract Portugal, and her 
government is still in the hands of rulers who evince a total 
■ incapacity for the duties of their stations. 

Italy. 

Italy enjoyed a degree of prosperity under Napoleon un- 
known to her for ages; but with the old state of things, 
returned misery and anarchy. According to the regula- 
tions of the congress of Vienna, the king of Sardinia was 
reinstated, and received, as additional territory, the duchy 
of Geneva. The new Lombardo- Venetian kingdom was 
given to Austria; the Po was constituted the boundary 
between Parma and the Popedom; Ferdinand of Austria 
became grand-duke ©f Tuscany; Ferdinand IV. was recog- 
nised as king of the Two Sicilies, and the minor states were 
principally given to Austria. Thus Italy was little more 
than a province of that empire. But the desire of liberty 
led to the formation of various clubs and secret political 
societies, of which the principal were the famous Carbonari. 
Their object was the deliverance of Italy from foreign rule, 
and the establishment of a democratic government for the 
whole peninsula. The leaders of these institutions were 
men of talents, influential with the people, and controlling, 
in a great degree, the popular press. From the year 1820 
till the expulsion of the pope in 1848, these men devoted 
their whole efforts to the accomplishment of their object; 
their exertions producing serious riots in Naples, Sicily, and 
Piedmont. 

In the month of March, 1820, more than 600,000 mem- 
bers were added to the Carbonari. In the next year, they 
nttempted to revolutionize Naples and Piedmont, but were 
«!.uppres8ed by an Austrian army. At the congress of Lay- 




505 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 5G7 

back and Verona, the sovereigns of Europe resolved upon 
an armed intervention to quell the revolutionary spirit. 
Yet, in 1825, a conspiracy was detected at Rome, having 
for its object the overthrow of Austrian rule and the esta- 
blishment of a consolidated government. Soon afterw ards, 
all secret societies were prohibited, tribunals supported by 
columns of troops were appointed to punish the authors of 
revolutions, and proscriptions, banishments, and executions 
followed. The press, schools, and universities were closely 
watched, and the education of youth confided to the Jesuits. 
These measures, however, did not prevent occasional out- 
breaks. 

Meanwhile, some changes had taken place in the Papal 
States. In 1823, pope Pius VII. died. He was succeeded 
by cardinal Annibal della Genga, under the title of Leo XII. 
He died in 1829, and was succeeded by cardinal Castiglione, 
who died in 1830. In the next year, Gregory XVI. became 
pope. 

The French revolution of 1830 revived the spirit of in- 
surrection in Italy. The Austrian government took prompt 
and vigorous measures to crush any outbreaks in the Lom- 
baAlo-Venetian kingdom, and the other parts of Italy were 
ea,sily approached by the troops in that quarter. The out- 
breaks at Bologna and Modena were speedily quelled, and 
were followed by a period of external tranquillity. When 
Ferdinand I. ascended the throne of Austria, he liberated 
the imprisoned Italians, and granted an amnesty for politi- 
cal offences ; but the country continued in a disturbed con- 
dition until the death of Gregory XVI., in 1846. He was 
succeeded by Pius IX., whose accession was the signal for 
the movement of many of the elements which produced the 
stormy events of 1848. 

Germany and Prussia. 

In 1815, the Germanic League was formed of the states 
composing the old German empire. The principal objects 
of this confederacy were the independence of the constituent 
states ; prevention of hostilities between one state and 
another; the security of each state from civil war; the es- 
tablishment of representative constitutions ; legal equality 
of religious sects; the exercise of a common civil law, by 
which the citizens of one state may enjoy civil and religious 
privileges in another. These states were too loosely held 
together, either to be formidable in war or tranquil in 
peace. From 1816 to the present time, Germany has bcea 



568 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

Buffering from internal distractions, and, with respect to the 
control of Europe, politically dead. 

The political history of Germany, apart from its most 
powerful states, Austria and Prussia, has been of little 
importance since 1820. Some commotion was caused in 
the states by the French revolution of 1830, but it subsided 
when it was ascertained that the policy of Louis Philippe 
was favorable to peace. In 1831, the diet prohibited all 
interference of the subjects with the affairs of the govern- 
ment, either by petition or otherwise. A censorship of the 
press was also recommended. In 1834, authors of liberal 
pamphlets were forbidden to publish their productions. In 
1840, the people united with the government in preparing 
for a war with France, in consequence of the hostile attitude 
assumed by that country concerning the eastern question ; 
but the storm passed away, and Germany fell back to her 
former inefficiency.! In 1840, the preaching of John Runge, 
a Catholic priest, against an exhibition of the so-called Holy 
Coat at Treves, excited a commotion throughout Germany, 
and resulted in the secession of large numbers from the 
Catholic communion, and their subsequent formation of a 
new religious body, called the German Catholic church. |[ 

The Netherlands. 

The union of the states composing the Netherlands did 
not produce tranquillity. The bitterness of feeling engen- 
dered by religious differences and the remembrance of the 
old national hatred produced, on the one part, stringent 
measures of government against the French Catholic mis- 
sionaries who had been the cause of much disturbance; 
and, on the other, an excommunication from the pope 
against some distinguished ecclesiastics who had sworn 
allegiance to the king. Amid insurrections and disturb- 
ances of various kinds, the government found time to esta- 
blish pauper colonies for the relief of the poor, to build 
canals, and organize agricultural societies. Troubles oc- 
curred with the natives of the East Indies, but all were 
settled advantageously for the Netherlands. Trade revived, 
and a joint-stock company, for the promotion of various 
branches of industry, was founded by the king. The Nether- 
lands rendered great aid to Great Britain in suppressing the 
slave trade. By a treaty with that power, in 1824, the 
Netherlands received full possession of the English portion 
of Sumatra in exchange for the Dutch territories on th© 
main land of India. 

In 1829, religious and political animosities became so 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 569 

violent, that government resolved to change its polic;^ from 
concession to firm resistance. The Belgian petitions for 
redress were thrown aside, and laws passed against the 
liberty of the press. Some editors were arrested and tried 
for treason; and being found guilty, were banished. Amid 
the uproar caused by these proceedings, news of the French 
revolution arrived. All Brussels took arms instantly. The 
troops fired on the mob, but they were driven back and the 
people took possession of the arsenal. On the 27th of 
August, the royal arms were torn down, and the people 
chose new municipal officers. The revolution spread through 
southern Netherlands, and an address was presented to the 
king, asking for a complete change in the administration. 
The king refused, and sent an army towards Brussels, under 
command of his sons, prince Frederick, and the prince of 
Orange. The latter entered Brussels with his troops, and 
after consultation with the deputations from the city and 
from Liege, became satisfied of the necessity of a separation 
of Holland and Belgium. He laid the matter before the 
king, and he declared his determination to refer all to the 
states-general. The people again took to arms; so that 
when the states-general met in September, they had to 
choose between anarchy and separation. On the 29th of 
September, they declared, by a large majority, the legisla- 
tive and administrative separation of Holland and Belgium. 
When the news of this declaration reached Brussels, another 
outbreak ensued, which resulted in the triumph of the 
people and the choice of popular officers. 

The burghers, appealing for aid to the king, prince 
Frederick, after issuing a proclamation, advanced upon the 
city. Every preparation was made for resistance by the 
insurgents, headed by the political clubs and factious 
Frenchmen. The battle began on the 23d. The people 
fought behind their barricades, and boiling oil, rockets, 
stones, and every variety of missile were used against the 
troops. Part of the city was reduced to ashes. Women 
armed themselves and fought behind the barricades ; and, 
after a four days' struggle, the prince was driven ofi", with 
the loss of 4000 men. After the victory of the people, the 
provisional government declared the provinces separated 
from Holland should form an independent state. Three 
parties immediately appeared ; one favorable to an alliance 
with France ; one desiring a regency under the prince of 
Orange; and another, headed by De Potter, a banished 
editor, anxious for a democracy, with the Catholic religion 
as the religion of the state. The country was in a state of 
48 



570 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IIL 

anarchy, brutal violence and rapine being paramount every- 
where. Some Belgian troops irritated the commandant of 
the citadel of Antwerp, lieutenant-general Chasse, and he 
bombarded the city for seven hours, with the most destruc- 
ti^'e effect. 

On the 3d of February, 1831, the new congress elected 
the duke of Nemours, son of Louis Philippe, king of Bel- 
gium; but the French monarch declined the crown for his 
son. A regency was appointed, and the government went 
into operation. At length prince Leopold was elected king, 
and war with Holland ensued, which, but for the interfe- 
rence of France, would have ended in the total conquest of 
Belgium. In 1832, the leading powers of Europe acknow- 
ledged the independence of Belgivim, and recommended to 
the king of Holland a suspension of hostilities. But Hol- 
land being dissatisfied, both countries prepared for war. 
France and England agreed in convention, that Belgium 
should surrender Venloo, and Holland Antwerp, by the 
2d of November; and that if Holland refused to comply, 
England should blockade her ports while a French army 
marched against Antwerp. Both events occurred. M?a"shal 
Gerard, with a French army, gained possession of Antwerp 
at the close of the year 1832, after which hostilities were 
suspended. But it was not till 1839, that, through the 
mediation of the five great powers, Holland acknowledged 
the Belgic nationality. King William abdicated the throne 
of Holland the next year in favor of his son, William II. 

Austria. 
The influence of Austria over the other countries of 
Europe has been increasing since the congress of Aix-la- 
Chapelle. Her domestic policy is cruel and despotic. In 
1819, a censorship of all literary institutions was established, 
with a law intended to suppress liberal opinions, liberal 
writings, and secret societies. In the same year, a congress 
at Vienna adopted' a constitution, which was subsequently 
acknowledged as law by the whole Germanic body. Austria 
possessed the strongest influence in the congresses of Trap- 
pau, Laybach, and Verona, which decided the political affairs 
of Italy, Spain, and Greece. In all these, the principles of 
legitimacy and armed interference with the small states 
were established as rules of conduct by the Holy Alliance. 
Austria was opposed to the recognition of Greek indepen- 
dence, and bore a full share in exciting the troubles in 
Portugal and Spain. She acted as mediator between Russia 
and Turkey, in the war between those powers. In th€» 




671 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 573 

mean time, every means were adopted to banish liberal 
opinions. The subjects were forbidden to speak of the 
government, even in praise. Learning and education were 
discouraged. 

In 1820, while the emperor Francis was at Laybach, he 
said he wanted no learned men, but good, loyal subjects. 
The military force successfully resisted all the attempts at 
revolt consequent upon the French revolution of 1830. On 
the 2d of March, 1835, Francis II. died, and was succeeded 
by his son, Ferdinand I. No change followed in the Aus- 
trian policy. In November, 1846, Austria united with 
Russia and Prussia in annihilating the nationality of Cra- 
cow, the last relic of the old Polish kingdom. The territory 
around Cracow was annexed to Austria. This event, which 
produced a great sensation in Europe, increased the discon- 
tent and spirit of insurrection which had long existed in 
the central provinces, particularly Hungary and Bohemia. 
When Pius IX. ascended the papal chair, he was suspected 
of favoring liberal opinions ; and Ferdinand poured his best 
troops, by large detachments, into Italy. In the summer 
of 1847, an Austrian army seized Ferrara. Another army 
appeared on the borders of Sardinia, and all the northern 
provinces were in like manner watched and occupied. The 
plot to avssassinate the pope was believed to be the result 
of Austrian intrigue. The commotions in Vienna continu- 
ing, the designs of Austria upon Italy were in a great 
degree checked. 

Eussia. 

The subsiding of the violent commotions which attended 
the destruction of the power of Napoleon found Russia a 
power of the greatest influence. After the peace of Vienna, 
Alexander directed his attention to the development of the 
resources of his country with energy and success. His 
military power was a source of terror to the neighboring 
nations, and his domestic affairs were directed in such a 
manner as to re-organize the various branches of govern- 
ment and society. He died December 1st, 1825, and was 
succeeded by his brother Nicholas. As the elder brother, 
Con stan tine Csesarowitsch, renounced his right to the throne, 
a revolt occurred in the army, during which a conspiracy 
of the old Russian nobility, which had existed for years, 
was detected. The disturbance was suppressed and several 
of the conspirators executed. The next year, a war began 
with Persia, concerning the Persian succession. Russia 
prosecuted it with vigor, and by treaty, in 1827, gained a 



674 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART TIL 

large accession of territory and the payment of all expenses 
In 1828, war was declared against Turkey, caused by the 
relations of Russia with the Greeks. An army of 115,000 
men, entering Turkey, took possession of the Upper Danube. 
The mountain fortresses of Choumla and Varna, where the 
flower of the sultan's army was concentrated, were attacked, 
and Choumla taken, after a two months' siege ; but an early 
winter and the prevalence of disease exposed the Russians 
to great losses. Another division of troops marched through 
Caucasus into Asiatic Turkey, seized several strongholds, 
and destroyed a flotilla on the Black Sea. When winter 
had terminated the campaign, various attempts to settle 
the difficulty were made by the European powers, but to no 
effect. In the middle of winter hostilities recommenced. In 
Europe, the Turks lost several fortresses and a portion of 
their fleet. In Asia the contest was more serious. A great 
deal of hard fighting took place, but the Turks were every- 
where defeated. In August, 1829, the great city of Slivno 
was taken. A week later, Adrianople fell. On the 14th of 
September, a treaty of peace was signed, by which the 
boundaries of Turkey were adjusted, and an indemnity 
made to Russia for all expenses. 

This war was soon followed by the revolution in Poland, 
which crushed the hope of freedom in that country. Since 
the peace of Adrianople, Russia has taken advantage of 
every opportunity to extend her influence over Turkey. She 
has made repeated attacks upon Persia. The war waged 
with the brave mountaineers of Caucasus has been a series 
of defeats and humiliations to Russia for many years. In 
the mean time, the emperor Nicholas has displayed great 
zeal for internal improvements and the cause of education 
in his dominions. 

SiDeden. 

The union of Sweden and Norway is a mere political 
relation — the habits, feelings, and interests of the people of 
the two countries being rather antagonistical. Swedish 
society presents the predominating feature of aristocracy ; 
Norwegian, that of democracy. Charles XIV. appeared to 
be peculiarly fitted for the reconciliation of difi"erence8, 
which, under a less enlightened and more bigoted monarch, 
would have produced serious results. He possessed the 
confidence of the army and a majority of the nation; and 
he pursued a policy marked with moderation and wisdom. 
In 1823, some conspiracies for restoring to the throne the 
exiled house of Wasa were detected, and their design frus- 




General Scott. 



575 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUTS PHILIPPE. 577 

trated by the vigilance of the p^iblic officers. Their repeti- 
tion was prevented by an amicable arrangement with the 
crown. The judicial power was separated from the execu- 
tive, and various reforms were made with regard to com- 
merce, agriculture, and the administration of justice. 
Treaties were entered into with Great Britain and tlie 
United States, which served to strengthen the government. 
In 1824, the king of Norway endeavored to prevail upon 
the storthing, or congress of the nation, to give him an abso- 
lute veto and the appointment of the president of the stor- 
thing, to create a hereditary nobility, and other acts. The 
proposals were unanimously rejected, although the king 
was personally popular. The tumults of 1830 did not dis- 
turb the tranquillity of the Scandinavian empire. Internal 
improvements of various kinds then occupied the attention 
of government, and several important canals were con- 
structed. In 1834, the proceedings of the national diet 
were opened to the public. In 1840, a law was passed, by 
which the diet meets every three years, instead of every 
five, Charles XIV, died on the 8th of March, 1844, aged 
80 years, and was succeeded by his son, Oscar I. Latterly 
the history of Sweden presents nothing of importance, save 
the government's protestation against the incorporation of 
the territory around Cracow with the dominions of Austria, 

Turkey, 

In 1817, Mahmoud VI. seized Moldavia and "Wallachia, 
which had partly been ceded to Russia by the treaty of 
1812, under pretence that Russia favored the rebellion of 
the Greeks, The moderation of the emperor Alexander, 
joined with the mediation of Austria and England, served 
to prevent an outbreak immediately. When the emperor 
Nicholas succeeded Alexander, he demanded and obtained 
satisfaction. In 1826, the measures pursued by the sultan 
in exterminating the janizaries caused an insurrection in 
Constantinople, during which 6000 houses were burned. 
Military despotism being established, Mahmoud conducted 
himself with equal ferocity against his own subjects and 
the rebel Greeks. At the same period he re-organized his 
army after the European form, and, among other improve- 
ments, adopted the European dress. But these reforms 
rendered him so unpopular with the people that he was 
obliged to suspend them. The war with Russia began in 
1828, and at the close, by the treaty of Adrianople, Turkey 
surrendered Moldavia and Wallachia, acknowledged the 
49 



578 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PART TTL 

independence of Greece, and lost a district of Asiatic 
Turkey. 

Mahmoiid then resumed his projects of civil and military 
reform ; but they caused insurrections which required two 
ye:i.rs to suppress. Then followed the war with Mehemet 
All, pasha of Egypt. That officer had refused to pay tribute^ 
in virtue of the assistance he had given the sultan dviring 
the Turkish war ; and when irritated by the high* tone of 
the Turkish court, he sent his son, Ibrahim pasha, with an 
army into Syria. Ibrahim reduced Acre, routed 25,000 
Turks, and then advanced against their main body. In 
December, 1832, the army of the sultan was totally defeated 
at Konieh ; and though Russia assisted Turkey by a 
squadron and a military force, Mahmoud was compelled to 
surrender Syria to the pasha. In 1839, hostilities were 
renewed, and in June the Turks were routed at Nezib, near 
Aleppo, Mahmoud died before the news reached him. 
He was succeeded by his eldest son, Abdul Medgid, a youth 
of sixteen. Two weeks after, the Turkish fleet, under the 
capudan pasha, went over to the enemy. On the 15th of 
July, 1840, the war terminated. By a treaty concluded at 
London, between Great Britain, Russia, Prussia, and Aus- 
tria, Syria was restored to Turkey, and Mehemet Ali obliged 
to content himself with Eg^^pt. 

After the settlement of this difficulty, the sultan directed 
his attention to the introduction of European customs ; but 
his designs were everywhere opposed, and the people were 
excited to hatred and the more active to sedition. For five 
years, some of the provinces were in revolt; and the utmost 
exertions of the sultan to restore order and re-organize the 
social and political systems only produced mortifying re- 
sults. In 1846, war occurred with Greece, and it was con- 
ducted with all the barbarity and devastation usual with 
the Turks and the Greeks. 

Greece. 
The revolution by which the Greeks threw off the Turkish 
yoke was the first great event in that country after the 
congress of Vienna. The first attempt at rebellion was 
made in 1821 ; but not- receiving the expected aid from 
"•Russia, the Greeks were suppressed. Then the patriots 

ind their wives and children were treated w\\h the greatest 
iegree of cruelty. Soon after, the inhabitants of the Morea 

evolted, and some skirmishes ensued, followed by massacre 
\nd devastation. In Cyprus, where no insurrection had 
..aken place, the Turks murdered most of the inhabitants 




679 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 581 

and burned sixty-two villages. Like outrages were com- 
mitted at Rhodes, Pergamos, and Smyrna. The Greek fleet 
blockaded all the ports of the Mgesm Sea. A Greek force 
took Tripolissa by storm, and massacred 8000 Turks. The 
Turks desolated the peninsula of Cassandra and slaughtered 
3000 persons. 

In January, 1822, deputies from various parts of Greece 
formed themselves into a provisional government and pro- 
claimed a constitution. A Turkish fleet and army appeared 
before Scio, and after wasting the island and massacring 
thousands, sold 41,000 of the people as slaves. Forty 
Greeks, devoting themselves to death, fired a part of the 
Turkish fleet, and more than 2000 men perished. In Cara- 
Veria, 5000 Christian families were slaughtered. Skirmish- 
ing of a severe character was carried on in the Morea, 
until August, 1823, when the Greeks united their forces 
and routed 20,000 Turks, with great slaughter, near Napoli. 
Numbers of the Turkish vessels were destroyed by tempests 
and the Greek fire. The sultan resolved on a war of ex- 
termination. He sent a second army into Greece; but part 
of it was defeated at Thermopylae, by the Greek Ulyssus, 
and soon after another detachment was routed at Cheronea 
by the same leader. On the 20 th of August, Marco Boz- 
zaris defeated 20,000 Turks at Agrapha, in a night attack. 
The victory cost the Greeks the death of Bozzaris. The 
Turks attacked Ipsara; but after an obstinate and bloody 
contest, they were driven ofi". 

On the main land, the Greeks were equally successful. 
The third siege of Missolonghi, which l&,sted from April till 
October of the year 1825, terminated in the defeat of the 
Turks, with the loss of 9000 men, A fourth attack was 
attended with the same result. But it was taken finally, 
in 1826. The sufiierings of the Greeks on this occasion 
awakened the sympathy of Europe. The three great powers 
united in their favor, and societies were everywhere formed 
for their relief. In the mean time, the Egyptian allies of 
the sultan overran the Morea, and the Greeks were reduced 
to extremity. The sultan rejecting the mediation of the 
three great powers, the Turkish and Egyptian fleet of one 
hundred and ten vessels was annihilated, in the bay of 
Navarino, by an English, French, and Russian fleet. In 
1828, a body of French troops entered Greece, and, through 
the influence of France and England, the Egyptian pasha 
withdrew his troops from the Morea. In the next year, the 
sultan signed the articles submitted to him by the three 
great powers, acknowledging the independence of Greece, 
49* 



582 HISTORY OF TTIK WOP^LD. PAKT IH. 

Some skirmishing occurred after this, but the independence 
of Greece was secured by the treaty of Adrianople, in Sep- 
tember. 

Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg was chosen by the allied 
powers to be the king of Greece. But he declined accept- 
ing it, and Otho of Bavaria became the king. The country 
was in a state of anarchy, which continued until 1843, 
when the king was compelled to call a national assembly 
for the purpose of forming a new constitution. This con- 
Btitution, which is monarchical, was completed in 1844. 

The intrigues of European powers and the quarrels of 
factions have prevented the realization of the hopes the 
friends of Greece conceived in 1829. 

The United States of America. 

James Monroe, the fifth president of the United States, 
was inaugurated March 4th, 1821. In 1824, a treaty was 
concluded with Russia, by which that power abandoned 
that part of Oregon south of 54° 40^. In the same year, a 
treaty was concluded with England, for the suppression of 
the slave trade. In 1825, Lafayette visited the land whose 
independence he had helped to establish, and was every- 
where received with demonstrations of respect and grati- 
tude. The sixth president of the Union was John Quincy 
Adams, under whose administration several treaties were 
concluded with the Indian tribes, by which portions of 
Georgia, Arkansas, and Missouri were ceded to the United 
States. Other treaties were concluded with the republic of 
Colombia, Denmark, and Central America. On the 4th of 
July, 1826, two ex-presidents, Jefferson and Adams, died. 
In 1828, the passage of a new tariff bill caused violent com- 
motions in the Southern States ; and in the same year, 
general Andrew Jackson was elected president by a large 
majority. The tariff question continued to be agitated, and 
during the sessions of congress from 1829 till 1832, it formed 
the principal subject. In 1832, a new bill was passed, 
lowering the rate of duties considerably. But the South 
were dissatisfied, and demanded its repeal. A convention 
was held in South Carolina, which declared both tarifi" acts 
null and void, and declared, that if the national government 
endeavored to enforce them, the Union would be dissolved. 
The advocates of these measures were called Nullifiers. The 
president issued a proclamation, declaring his intention to 
maintain the integrity of the Union. Civil war seemed in- 
evitable, when Henry Clay proposed his Compromise Act, 
which. met with the support of the Southern members. 




John QuiQcj Adams. 



583 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 585 

This danger was scarcely averted, when a new source of 
contention arose from the president's vetoing a bill for the 
re-charter of the United States Bank. This virtually abo- 
lished the institution, which produced derangement and 
distress throughout the mercantile world. The large cities 
were opposed to the measures of the president; and petitions 
from the great trading and moneyed interests, praying for 
a restoration of the charter of the bank, poured into con- 
gress. The president maintained his opposition to the 
Lank, and wound up its concerns. The warlike attitude of 
the president towards France was modified by the opposi- 
tion of congress, and the difficulty was adjusted, through 
the mediation of Great Britain. An outrage of some whites, 
in Florida, caused the Seminole war — a protracted and un- 
satisfactory contest. The al)olition of the national bank 
caused the chartering of a vast number of state banks, 
which produced a great deal of wild speculation and a 
paper currency of enormous amount. 

Amid social and political troubles, general Js kson's 
second term of office expired. The next president, Alartin 
Van Buren, was a strenuous advocate of the Jacksoi policy. 
The Seminole. war continued, attended with all the (lorrors 
of Indian warfare. The everglades of Florida afibi led the 
Indians a secure refuge. Another Indian war, wit a Black 
Hawk and his followers, in the west, was ended in 1832, 
by the capture of that chief. In the same year, the cholera 
visited the country. The government acknowledged the 
independence of Texas, and a number of volunteer.) joined 
the Texan troops opposed to the army of Mexico. At the 
battle of San Jacinto, the Mexicans were defeated a; d Santa 
Anna, the Mexican president, was captured and c( nducted 
to Washington, where he signed a treaty acknovledging 
Texan independence. The year of president Van Buren's 
inauguration saw the bursting of the storm which i ^ad been 
pending over every department of industry since the aboli- 
tion of the national bank. Almost all the banks in the 
country either broke or suspended specie payments. Busi- 
ness of every kind was brought to a stand, and mechanics 
and laborers were reduced to extreme distress. The Florida 
war was continued, and Osceola, the most prominent Semi- 
nole leader, captured. Petitions for the convening of an 
extra session of congress were laid before the president, but 
were disregarded. 

At the regular session, in December, little was done with 
the object of relieving the general distress, the attention of 
congress being directed to aflFairs on the Cauada border 



586 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART HI. 

Canada had revolted, and parties of Americans crossed the 
boundary to assist the insurgents. A special message waa 
issued by the president, forbidding the citizens to cross the 
boundary with the object of assisting the Canadians, and 
general Scott, with some New York troops, was ordered to 
the border. On the night of the 28th of December, a party 
of British militia burned the steamboat Caroline, and sent 
it over Niagara. An angry correspondence with the British 
minister was the consequence of this affair, but nothing 
serious occurred. In 1838 the banks resumed specie pay- 
ments. Another difficulty occurred with Great Britain, on 
the Maine boundary question, during which war was anti- 
cipated by both countries. 

In 1839, the banks again suspended. Next year, general 
Harrison was elected to the presidency by a large majority. 
A complete change of policy was the consequence. A spe- 
cial session of congress was called to meet in May, and it 
was expected the cardinal principles of the Whig party 
would be carried out. General Harrison died in one month 
after his inauguration, and was succeeded by vice-president 
Tyler. In May, congress met. Its first great measure, the 
bill for the establishment of the United States Bank, was 
vetoed by president Tyler. A second bill met the same 
treatment, and the consequence was, the resignation of the 
cabinet, with the exception of Mr. Webster. A new tariff 
bill was passed, and its effect was soon seen in the revival 
of trade and business. In 1842, the Maine boundary ques- 
tion was settled by Mr. Webster and lord Ashburton. 

In 1844, James K. Polk was elected to the presidency by 
the Democratic party. Next year, Florida and Iowa were 
admitted into the Union, and the treaty by which Texas 
was annexed became a law. In 1846, a treaty was con- 
cluded with Great Britain, by which the parallel of 49° was 
recognised as the boundary of the territory of Oregon. 
Congress passed bills reducing the tariff, establishing the 
warehouse system, and the sub-treasury. In the mean time, 
Mexico protested against the annexation of Texas, and her 
minister declared it a cause of war. The president ordered 
colonel Taylor into Texas, with a corps of observation. In 
March, 1846, orders were given him to take a position on 
bhe Rio Grande, the disputed boundary line between Mexico 
md Texas. Colonel Taylor built Fort Brown, opposite 
Matamoras, against which the Mexicans protested. The 
VIexican army finally crossed the Rio Grande, and attacked 
he small American force, on the road leading from Fort 
5rown.. They were defeated in the two battles of the 8th 




587 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 589 

and 9th of May, and driven across the river, with much 
slaughter. At the same time, Fort Brown was bombarded, 
but made a successful resistance. Matamoras was taken 
on the 18th, and then war was declared against Mexico by 
the United States. Colonel Taylor was raised to the rank 
of major-general, and received a large reinforcement of 
troops. During the summer, Mier, Reynoso, and Camarge 
were taken, and on the 19th of September, the American 
army, numbering 7000 strong, appeared before Monterey. 
This strong fortress and city was defended by 12,000 men, 
under general Ampudia. After a four days' battle, the city 
capitulated. Saltillo, Parras, and Victoria were next taken, 
and on the 22d of February, general Taylor, with about 
5000 men, encamped at the strong mountain pass of Angos- 
tura, near Buena Vista. Here he was 'attacked by general 
Santa Anna, with 20,000 men. The battle began early on 
the 23d. The Americans relied principally on their artillery, 
which did great execution among the Mexican cavalry. The 
nature of the ground prevented the cavalry from acting pro- 
perly. The battle was obstinately contested, and at night 
both armies occupied the same ground they did when the 
battle began. During the night, Santa Anna retreated, his 
army being in a starving condition. His loss was 2000 
men ; general Taylor's, about 700. From want of military 
stores, general Taylor retired to Monterey, where he re- 
mained till the close of the war. 

In the mean time, general Kearny, and colonels Fremont, 
Price, and Doniphan conducted expeditions against Ncav 
Mexico and California. Several battles were fought, and 
the principal towns fell into the hands of the American 
troops. Colonel Doniphan's march through the enemy's 
country, with but 900 men, displayed great military resolu- 
tion and perseverance. During the march, he encountered 
and defeated 4000 men, on the banks of the Sacramento, 
(February 28th, 1847.) 

In March, 1847, general Scott, commander-in-chief of the 
American army, landed near Vera Cruz, with 11,000 men. 
Batteries were opened upon the city of Vera Cruz and the 
castle of St. Juan de Ulloa, and, on the 27th of March, both 
surrendered. Soon after, Alvarado and Zacotalpam were 
captured. Early in the next month, general Scott marched 
^or the Mexican capital. On the 17th he reached the moun- 
tain pass of Cerro Gordo, where Santa Anna was posted, 
with 11,000 men. Next day, the Americans, numbering 
7000, stormed the works and routed the Mexicans. They 
pressed forward, and Jalapa, Perote, and Puebla were cap 
50 



590 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART HI. 

tured without resistance. Six thousand prisoners and a 
great quantity of military stores were taken. On the 18th 
of August, the Americans reached San Augustin, near the 
city of Mexico. On the 19th and 20th, Contreras, San An- 
tonia, and Churubusco were taken — the latter after an ob 
stinate struggle. In these battles, 15,000 Mexicans were 
posted in almost impregnable positions, while the attacking 
force numbered altogether but 7000 men. An armistice 
was concluded, which lasted till the 6th of September. On 
the 8th, general Worth stormed the works of Molino del 
Rey, and carried them, but with a heavy loss. On the 12th, 
the batteries opened upon Chapultepec, one of the strongest 
fortresses in Mexico. Next day, it was carried by storm. 
At the same time the assault on the city commenced. Gene- 
ral Twiggs bombarded the southern walls, general Worth 
swept the works on the San Cosme road, and general 
Quitman those on the Tacubaya. Night found both columns 
in the city, and before morning Santa Anna, with his 
remnant of an army, fled. On the 14th, the Americans 
entered Mexico in triumph. This, however, did not close 
the war. On the 25th of September, Santa Anna appeared 
before Puebla, and bombarded it until the Ist of October, 
when he retreated. On the 9th, general Lane won the 
battle of Huamantla, and soon after captured Atlixco. 
These were the last important events of the war. 

Mexico and Central America. 

From the year 1813 till 1821, various Mexican chiefs 
struggled for the independence of their country. In the 
last mentioned year, Iturbide and other chiefs united against 
the Spanish army. Next year, Iturbide assumed the title 
of emperor Augustin I. After a reign of ten months, he 
was driven from the country, and a federal republic esta- 
blished. Vittoria became president, but party spirit pre- 
vented the restoration of peace. In 1828, the two factions 
came to open war, each advocating the claims of a candidate 
to the presidency, and in the end appealing to the sword. 
Spain attempted to regain her authority, but was frustrated 
by general Santa Anna. A civil war followed, during which 
Guerrero was deposed and general Bustamente elected vice- 
president by the army. Under his rule, order was, in some 
measure, restored, and business revived. In 1831, president 
Pedrazza returned from France. Bustamente ordered him 
to leave the country. Santa Anna revolted in Vera Cruz, 
and another revolt occurred at Tampico. Santa Anna be- 
tame president in 1833. In the next year, congress abo- 



CHAP. IX. RESTORATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 591 

lished convents and abrogated the authority of the pope. 
This caused insurrections so serious that congress adjourned, 
and the power of Santa Anna increased. Several of tht 
states declared themselves independent, but, with the ex- 
ception of Texas, they were soon reduced. The army under 
Santa Anna was routed at San Jacinto, in April, 1836, and 
the independence of Texas was virtually secured. General 
Bustamente regained power, and by his miserable policy, 
involved the country in a war with France. In November, 
1838, a French squadron reduced St. Juan de Ulloa. Santa 
Anna displayed some energy in defending Yera Cruz ; but 
through the mediation of the British minister, the dispute 
was soon settled. At the expiration of Bustamente's term, 
he was succeeded by Santa Anna. Since that time, with 
the exception of the period of the war with the United 
States, civil broils have occupied the history of Mexico. 

Central America, once Guatemala, declared itself inde- 
pendent of Spain in 1821. It was united to Mexico, under 
Iturbide, but when he fell, it became a separate government. 
On the 22d of November, 1824, the constituent congress 
completed the organization of the government, adopting a 
constitution similar to that of the United States, Arce was 
elected first president. The quarrels of factions, civil war, 
and social misery of every kind, marked the period of his 
administration. The people of St, Salvador marched against 
those of Guatemala, but were defeated by Arce, who per- 
petrated the greatest outrages. In 1829, general Morazon, 
of St. Salvador, captured the city of Guatemala, which se- 
cured his election to the presidency. He endeavored to 
restore order, and develope the domestic resources of the 
country. In 1838, an insurrection occurred, under Carrera, 
a half-Indian. To political animosities he added the hatred 
of one race to another. In 1842, Morazon v/as taken and 
shot; and since his death the country has been torn by 
civil dissensions. The war between the United States and 
Mexico produced no disturbance in Central America. It is 
thought that foreign industry will yet develope the resources 
of the country, and make it a great commercial mart. 

South America. 
The republic of Colombia comprises three provinces — 
Venezuela, Quito, and New Grenada. The first general 
congress met in March, 1821, and decided upon the adop- 
tion of a representative constitution. In June, the Spanish 
army was totally routed at Carabobo. Next year, Bolivar 
took Panama, and defeated Murgeon, at Curiaco. A month 



,^92 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PAM* ^ii. 

afterwards, Sucre gained the battle of Pichincha, after 
which the Spanish authorities surrendered. In 1824, Boli- 
var marched to assist the patriots of Peru, and in his ab- 
sence, the government was administered by Santander. 
The country was rapidly advancing in prosperity, when 
the revolt of Paez occurred. That ofi&cer kept all the 
northern provinces in turmoil until the return of Bolivar, 
in 1827. In March, 1828, a convention for redressing 
grievances was summoned to meet at Ocana ; but it did 
nothing. Bolivar then assumed the supreme authority, 
abolished the constitution, and appointed a series of officers. 
The republican party were aroused, and attempts were 
raade to assassinate Bolivar, but they failed, and the con- 
spirators were executed. Bolivar endeavored to make him- 
self perpetual president of Peru, which brought on a war 
with that country. Through the influence of Paez, Yenu- 
zuela declared herself independent, an event which caused 
the resignation of Bolivar, after he had formally denied all 
intention of aiming at the kingly dignity. In the same 
year, Quito declared her independence, and the remainder 
of Colombia was formed into the republic of New Grenada. 
The three states soon after entered into friendly relations 
with each other, with regard to trade and national policy. 
But, like most of the states of South America, their later 
history is made up of petty quarrels, unworthy of a record. 
Peru declared itself independent in 1821. General San 
Martin was appointed dictator, and in 1822, a congress met 
at Lima. This body adopted a constitution, which, from 
its monarchical character, gave great dissatisfaction. In 
1823, La Serna, the Spanish commander, defeated the re- 
publicans, but was prevented from improving his victory 
by dissensions in his army. Peru was then assisted by 
Colombia, which sent Bolivar and Sucre to their aid. The 
Peruvians were divided into/factions, and the weakness of 
the enemy alone saved the country. Bolivar became dic- 
tator. In December, 1824, Sucre gained the great battle 
of Ayacucho, which secured the independence of Peru. 
Bolivar tried to impose a monarchical constitution on the 
country, but his design was opposed, and he afterwards 
instigated the war against Colombia. Peace was concluded 
in 1829, after the Peruvians had experienced several defeats. 
Gamarra became president, but his intrigues with the presi- 
dent of Bolivia led to his overthrow, in 1836. Santa Cruz 
seized the government, but was compelled to abdicate, in 
consequence of a war with Chili. War was declared against 
Bolivia., and it continued until 1842, when, through tb* 




50* 



693 



CHAP. IX. K RATION AND LOUIS PHILIPPE. 595 

mediation of Chili, peace was restored. Since that time the 
country has been a prey to faction and domestic misrule. 

After the failure of the attempt of Bolivar to impose a 
constitution upon the people of Bolivia, that country re- 
mained in a very unsettled condition until 1829, when the 
elevation of Santa Cruz to the chief magistracy restored 
order. During two years, prosperity attended his policy; 
hut, thirsting for power, he involved the country in a war 
with Peru. He conquered that republic, and endeavored 
to unite it with Bolivia ; but the interference of Chili caused 
his overthrow. Since the last war with Peru, which termi- 
nated in 1842, the country has been very unsettled. 

Brazil remained a monarchy until 1820, when it obtained 
a constitution similar to the one adopted at that time in 
Portugal. The example of surrounding countries soon 
roused a republican spirit among the people. Serious riots 
broke out at Rio Janeiro. In May, 1822, the prince-regent 
assumed the title of perpetual defender of Brazil, and con- 
vened a national assembly to frame a constitution. This 
was pronounced null and void by the cortes of Portugal, 
and the prince-regent ordered home. The assembly then 
declared the separation of Brazil from Portugal, and Dom 
Pedro was named constitutional emperor, in October, 1822. 
The first acts of Dom Pedro were well calculated to aug- 
ment the difficulties he met Avith on his ascending the 
throne. The republicans were gaining ground. Dom Pedro 
forbade secret societies, and the suspected republicans were 
thrown into prison. In November, 1823, the assembly 
was driven from its hall by armed force. In 1824, a new 
constitution was framed, upon principles of hereditary and 
constitutional monarchy. The emperor and the assemljly 
mutually restricted each other's powers. The press was 
free, and other religions, besides the Catholic, were tole- 
rated. Pernambuco opposed this constitution, but was 
taken by assault, after an obstinate resistance. In Novem- 
ber, 1825, Portugal acknowledged the independence of 
Brazil, and the example was followed by other European 
powers. A short war with La Plata followed, concerning 
the Banda Orienta, and it resulted in the independence of 
that province. Disputes between the emperor and the 
assembly were frequent, and they increased to svich an ex- 
tent, that, in April, 1831, the emperor abdicated in favor 
of his son, Dom Pedro II., then only nine years oil. The 
prince maintained his authority until his death, within a 
few years, amid the quarrels of parties, which kopt society 
in a state of anarchy. 



596 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART III. 

In 1819, the provinces of La Plata adopted a constitution 
modelled after that of the United States. The country, 
however, continued unsettled until May, 1822, when a con- 
gress met, and by a series of acts restored public tranquil- 
lity. Trade revived very fast, and the country seemed to 
"be free from faction. In 1822, the independence of La Plata 
was recognised by the United States, and Great Britain en- 
tered into a treaty with her in 1825. In December of 1825 
war broke out with Brazil, which resulted in the formation 
of a new republic from the Banda Orienta. Civil war disr 
tracted and desolated the country in 1829, and it continued 
until 1835, when general Rosas was unanimously called to 
the presidency. He assumed dictatorial powers, and since 
that period, factious strife has only been suspended during 
hostility with other countries. 

The independence of Chili was secured in 1817 ; but the 
new government was not able to establish order. Three 
congresses assembled at different periods, for the purpose 
of framing a constitution, but they failed in accomplishing 
their object. The country was agitated by the disputes 
between the advocates of a central government and those 
who favored a federal constitution. In 1828, the constitu- 
tion was adopted, under the administration of general Pinto. 
Prieto, the successor of Pinto, restored order, and procured 
the passage of many useful laws. In 1837, Chili declared 
war against Peru, and successfully prosecuted it until 1839, 
when Santa Cruz was expelled from Peru. Chili is at pre- 
sent the most tranquil and prosperous of the South American 
btates. 



CHAP. X. 

TIMES OF THE CONTINENTAL REVOLUTIONS. 

France. 

Thb! approach of an outbreak among the people of Paris 
might, have been easily gathered from the movements of the 
democratic leaders. They instituted reform-banquets, a1 
which the measures of government were freely discussed, 
and attempts made to excite a veneration for the men who 
had fallen martyrs to the popular cause, and an emulation 
of their actions. Feeling certain of their strength, and 



CHAP. X. THE CONTINENTAL REVOLUTIONS. 597 

anxious to bring things to a crisis, the democrats appointed 
the 22d of February, 1848, for a monster banquet. This 
was forbidden by the ministry. The opposition deputies 
protested against the prohibition, and the ministry yielded, 
permitting the banquet to be held, under certain restrictions. 
Every measure was adopted by the government to prevent 
an outbreak. The troops in Paris were increased to 100,000. 
On the day appointed for the banquet, crowds collected in 
the principal streets, and the mob attempted to erect barri- 
cades. At the same time, Odillon Barrot'laid before the 
chambers a proposition for impeaching the ministers. The 
next day the excitement increased, and Guizot and his col- 
leagues resigned. A new ministry Avas formed under count 
Mole. The municipal guards joined the people, but by 
sunset, order was restored. During the night, the soldiers, 
after being pelted and fired upon by the people, fired upon 
them in turn. This was what the democrat leaders had 
been aiming to efi*ect. By parading and exhibiting the 
dead bodies, the people were excited to fury, and that fury 
was turned against the king. 

On the 24th, barricades were constructed, houses and 
public edifices stormed and demolished, and arms seized in 
every quarter. The troops joined the people in denouncing 
the king. The Tuileries was taken and plundered. Louis 
Philippe abdicated in favor of his grandson, the count of 
Paris, and fled to England. In the mean time, the duchess 
of Orleans, mother to the count of Paris, appeared in the 
chamber of deputies, but her title as regent and that of her 
son were disregarded. A number of deputies proclaimed a 
republic, and organized a provisional government. This 
consisted of Dupont de FEure, Lamartine, Arago, Ledru 
Rollin, and Garnier Pages. From the steps of the Hotel de 
Ville, the republic was announced to the people. It was 
received with enthusiasm by the majority, but there was 
still a strong minority opposed to it. The penalty of death 
for political oifences was abolished, every slave on French 
soil emancipated, and the qualifications for citizenship de- 
termined. By the 1st of March, order was, in a great 
measure, secured, and the- new government went into opera- 
tion. During the elections in April, the ^d Republicans 
were somewhat turbulent, but Lamartine criumphed. Ai 
executive committee of five members took the place of th 
provisional government. It consisted of Arago, Pages, 
Marie, Lamartine, and Rollin. Riots continued until the 
15th of May, when 50,000 persons invaded the assembly 
and declared the government at an end. The army, how- 



698 HISTORY OP THE WORLD. PAltr lit 

pver, remained true to the government, and the mob was 
dispersed. 

On the 23d of June, an insurrection occurred, instigated 
by clubs of workmen, discharged from the public workshops. 
It was the most terrible outbreak France had witnessed 
since the Reign of Terror. In a few hours, strong barri- 
cades were thrown up in and around. Paris, and 200,000 
insurgents were in arms. General Cavaignac was appointed 
commander-in-chief of the French army, and after a four 
days' battle, he succeeded in driving the insurgents from 
their works and restoring peace. About 30,000 persons 
were killed, the loss of the military being very great. Many 
distinguished officers were among the killed. General Ca- 
vaignac was subsequently appointed president of the coun- 
cil, and his vigorous measures secured tranquillity. On the 
12th of November, the constitution was proclaimed, and at 
the general election held the same month, Louis Napoleon 
Bonaparte was chosen president by a large majority. Soon 
after the election, it was determined to send a French army 
into Italy, under general Oudinot, for the purpose of restor- 
ing the exiled pope to his dominions. This caused numerous 
riots in France, and at Lyons the municipal authorities 
were driven from the city, and a temporary Ked Republican 
government formed. About 1000 persons were killed or 
wounded before order was secured. A conspiracy was 
discovered about the same time, the object of which was 
the overthrow of the government and the establishment of a 
democratic and social republic. Towards the close of 1849, 
the ministry was dissolved by president Bonaparte, and the 
designs of the president to concentrate power in himself 
were very apparent. 

Great Britain. 

In 1848, the evils to which Ireland had long been a prey 
reached their climax. Famine and pestilence desolated the 
country, and brought about a state of things almost impa- 
^^lleled in history. The principal cause of the misery of tlx 
people was the failure of the potato crops — ^that being theii 
staple article of food. Thousands died daily. The scarcity 
of provisions upon the continent prevented the arrival of 
any aid from that quarter. Government took means to 
alleviate the distress, and large quantities of provisions 
were sent from the United States. But the relief was only 
partial. In India, a war with the Sikhs was the conse- 
quence of disputes with the native chiefs, and the English 
experienced a humiliating defeat. But, in the end, the 



CHAP. X. THE CONTINENTAL REVOLUTIONS. 601 

Sikhs were routed and the Punjaub territory annexed to 
British India. Great Britain entered her protest against 
the annexation of the Cracow republic to Austria. She in- 
terfered in the domestic affairs of Spain, endeavoring to 
restore order. Vigorous measures suppressed the repeal 
agitation in Ireland, the Chartifyt effort in England^ and the 
riots in Scotland. The war with China was quickly broughi 
to a close. The new republic of France was recognised ae 
Buch soon after its formatioa, though Louis Philippe wag 
received by the government with every mark of attention 
and condolence. Great Britain remonstrated against the 
atrocities committed by Austria upon the Hungarian and 
Polish patriots. She promptly supported the sultan of 
Turkey in his refusal to deliver the Hungarian refugees 
into the hands of Russia, and, united with France, undoubt- 
edly prevented a war between Russia and Turkey, 

Italy, 
In 1848, Pius IX. gave a new constitution to his people, 
and reformed many abuses. He also resisted the interfe- 
rence of Austria, Still the people of the Papal States were 
so oppressed, that in the latter part of that year, they rose 
in insurrection, drove the pope from the country, abolished 
the college of cardinals, and proclaimed a republic. A cod 
stitution was framed, and a provisional government esta- 
blished. While all were watching the result of the movement, 
the French army, under general Oudinot, landed at Civita 
Vecchia, and marched for Rome, On the 26th of April, the 
constituent assembly declared its permanence, and pro- 
tested against French interference. A triumvirate of dis 
tinguished republican leaders formed the executive of the 
government. The siege began on the 30th of April. The 
Romans, filled with the most heroic and determined spirit, 
were commanded by Garibaldi, Mazzini, and other distin- 
guished chiefs. The French were repulsed in three suc- 
cessive attacks. On the 13th of May, Oudinot attempted to 
cross into Rome by a bridge, but the bridge was blown up 
and the French repulsed. A blockade followed, which 
lasted until June, when the French, after hard fighting, 
obtained possession of several important points. A storm- 
ing of the city was tried on the 15th, but the French were 
compelled to retire. Towards the close of the month, the 
triumvirate opened negotiations with Oudinot. A capitula- 
tion was the consequence, and on the 3d of July, the French 
entered Rome. The republican leaders fled. A temporary 
gQvcrnment was established, the cardinals restored to power, 



602 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART in. 

and the pope invited to return. Vigorous measures were 
adopted for the suppression of liberal opinions, and the In- 
quisition re-established. The pope has at length returned 
to his dominions, and a calm has succeeded the attempt of 
the masses to choose their own government. 

Germany and Prussia. 
The revolutionary spirit developed throughout Europe, in 
1848, powerfully affected both Germany and Prussia. Every 
part of these countries was agitated by riots for some months 
after the revolution in France. The king of Bavaria was 
compelled to abdicate, and other rulers were driven from 
their dominions. An outbreak in Prussia forced the king 
to disband a large part of his army, to grant a new consti- 
tution, and to appear to take the lead in reforming abuses. 
The diet at Frankfort was the scene of .violent debates, con- 
cerning a union of all Central and Northern Germany. The 
imperial crown was offered to the king of Prussia, but he 
declined it. The country is still in a distracted state. Its 
division into petty states, destitute of national sympathy, 
prevents it from occupying the position among the European 
powers to which it is justly entitled. Belgium and Holland 
were affected by the revolutionary spirit, but the succeeding 
calm left both countries in the same condition as before the 
disturbance. 

Austria. 

Insurrections occurred in Vienna soon after the revolu- 
tion in France, and the people so far succeeded, that prince 
Metternich fled from the country, the emperor Ferdinand 
abdicated in favor of his son Joseph, and a liberal constitu- 
tion was given to the people. In the mean time, the diet 
of Hungary adopted measures for securing to the people of 
that country their ancient privileges. In May, 1848, the 
pope having declared war against Austria, several skirmishes 
took place, in which the heroism of the Italians was credit- 
ably displayed. The dissensions in Hungary increased to 
civil war, so that the government was compelled to send a 
large army into the province. But the Hungarians, stimu- 
lated by the eloquence of Kossuth, and led by Bem, Dem- 
binski, and Georgey, displayed the greatest heroism and 
enthusiasm for their country's cause. The ablest Austrian 
• generals were everywhere defeated by them, and their cause 
seemed to be triumphant. But the emperor of Russia, 
anxious to crush the spirit of revolution and of liberty, sent 
an army of 120,000 men into Hungary, to assist the Aus- 




Kossuth. 



603 



CHAP. X. THE CONTINENTAL REVOLUTIONS. 605 

trians. The Hungarians struggled against such odds with 
considerable success, until the latter part of 1849, when 
general Georgey surrendered a force of 30,000 men to thG 
Austro-Russian army. This opened to the latter the key 
of the Hungarian position, and produced a disastrous ter- 
mination to the insurrection. The Hungarian army was 
disbanded, its leaders escaped, and the country was again 
brought under Austrian authority. Kossuth and his fellow 
chieftains fled to Turkey. The emperor of Russia demanded 
their surrender, but the sultan refused to comply. Since 
the crushing of the insurrection, the Austrians have in- 
flicted the most cruel and barbarous treatment upon the 
unfortunate patriots, which has awakened a feeling of in- 
dignation throughout the greater portion of Europe and 
America. 

Russia and Turkey. 

Russia took a decided part in the events of 1848, on the 
side of legitimacy. The emperor was opposed to the revolu- 
tion in France, and frowned upon the struggles of the 
republicans in Italy and Germany. When the war between 
Austria and Hungary was raging, he declared his intention 
of applying the strength of his empire to resist the attempts 
of the republicans. When the Hungarian leaders took 
refuge in Turkey, he demanded their surrender, and threat- 
ened war in case of refusal. But his demand was not com- 
plied with, nor did he carry his threat into operation. The 
sultan gave Kossuth and the other Hungarian leaders a 
place of residence in his dominions, and some of them, em- 
bracing the Mohammedan faith, received office in the army 
and other marks of his favor. 

The United States. 
Early in 1848, a treaty of peace was concluded between 
the United States and Mexico. The Rio Grande was ac- 
knowledged by the Mexican government as the boundary 
of Texas, and the valuable territories of California and New 
Mexico were ceded to the United States. In November, the 
same year, the Whigs elected general Zachary Taylor to the 
presidency. The discovery of the immense mineral wealth 
of California caused a vast number of emigrants from all 
parts of the world to seek that territory, and cities and 
states are springing up on the shores of the Pacific, which, 
till within a few years, were almost unknown. The quantity 
of gold obtained in California has realized the most sanguine 
expectations, and rewarded the hardest toil. In 1849, the 
51* 



606 HISTORY OF THE WORLD. PART IH. 

country was visited by the scourge of the cholera, which, 
among thousands of victims, carried away many who had 
filled distinguished situations, among whom were generals 
Gaines, and Worth, and ex-president Polk. Since that 
event, the exciting debates in congress, upon the subject of 
slavery, the dismissal of M. Poussin, the French minister 
to the United States, and some unsuccessful attempts to 
gain possession of Cuba, by citizens of the United States, 
have been the only events which have disturbed the internal 
peace, and external relations of the country. 

During the congressional session of 1849-50, the excite- 
ment upon the slavery question increased to an extent 
which threatened the dismemberment of the Union. In the 
Senate, a committee of thirteen of the most prominent 
statesmen, at the head of whom was Henry Clay, was ap- 
pointed to bring about an adjustment of the vexed question. 
They reported a Compromise Bill, providing for the ad- 
mission of California into the Union, the recapture of slaves 
fleeing from one state into another, the settlement of the 
claim of Texas on New Mexico, and giving a territorial 
government to Utah. This bill was discussed in the Senate 
for two months, and the ablest statesmen displayed their 
talents in speaking upon either side of the question. 
Finally, the Compromise measure was defeated. But each 
of the objects of the bill was afterwards provided for sepa- 
rately. 

While the bill was pending, the nation was suddenly 
called upon to mourn the loss of its chief magistrate. Pre- 
sident Taylor died on the 9th of July, 1850. Millard Fill- 
more, the vice-president, then became president. The 
members of the cabinet appointed by general Taylor im- 
mediately resigned ; and president Fillmore framed a new 
cabinet, at the head of which was Daniel Webster, as 
Secretary of State. 



TABULAR VIEW 

OF 

ROYAL DYNASTIES. 



Israel. 

Saul 10l»J 

David and Ishbosheth 1055 

Davi(t sole king 1148 

Solomon 1015 



JUDAH. 

B.C. 

Rehnboani . . . 975 

Abia 958 

Asa 955 

Jeliosapliat. . 914 

Jorain 88U 

Ahaziah 885 



Israel. 

B. c. 
Jeroboam I. . 975 

Nadab 954 

Baasa 953 

Ela 930 

Zimri 92;» 

Ahab 918 



JuDAH. 

B. C. 

Athaliah 884 

Joasli 878 

Amaziah 838 

Uzziah or Aza- 

riah 809 

Jotham 757 

Ahaz 741 

Hezekiah . . . 72() 

Manasses 697 

Ainon 642 

Josiab 640 

Jehoakaz ) ^..o 
608 



697 



Jelioiakim 
Zedekiah . . 



Israel. 

B. c. 

Ahaziah 89? 

Joram....... 896 

Jehu 884 

Jehoahaz .... 856 

Joash 839 

Jeroboam II.. 823 
Zachariah... 771 
Menaliem . . . 770 

Pekaiah 760 

Pekah 758 

Hoshea 729 

Samariah. . . . 721 



Persia, Kings of. , 

B. c. 

Cyras 559 

Cainbyses 529 

Smerdis Magus 522 

Darius I. son of Hys- 

taspes 521 

Xerxes 1 485 

Artaxerxes 1 464 

Xerxes [1 425 

Sogdiauus 424 

Darius II. Nothus. . 423 

Artaxerxes II 404 

Artaxerxes III '^58 

Arses or Arogus . . . 337 
Darius III. Codoma- 

nus 335 

Under the Greeks and 
Parthians from 33Ib.c. 
to 226 A. D. 

Sassanian Dynasty. 

A. D. 

Irdisheer Babigan, 
called by the Ro- 
mans Artaxerxes 226 

Shahpoor 1 240 

Hoormuz 1 271 

Baharam 1 272 

Baharam II 276 

Baharam III 293 



Narsi 2i)3 

Hoormuz II 303 

Shapoor II 310 

Ardislieer 11 381 

Shahpoor III 385 

Baharam IV 390 

Yozdejird-Ulathim . 404 

Baharam V 420 

Ye/.di^jird II 4.3,-' 

Firnze 458 

Pallas 484 

Kobad 488 

Noosheerwan 531 

Hoormuz III 579 

Baharam-Choubeen 590 

Khoosroo Purveez • 5'Jl 

Sheruveh 62H 

Shah-Sherrendeh... 631 

Arzem-dokht 632 

Yezd6jird III 632 



Modern Persia. 

Suffavean Dynasty. 

Shah Ismail 1504 

Tamasp 1523 

Ismail II 1576 

Mohammed Meerza 1577 
Abbas the Great . . 1582 



Sam Meerza, or 

Shah Suflee 

Abbas II 

Suffw Meerza, or 

Shah Suleiman. . 

Hoossein 

Mahmood (the Aff- 

gliaii) ••••• 

Ashraff (the Aff- 

ghaii) 

Tamasp II. son of 

Hoossein 

Nadir Shah 

Adil Shah 

Interregnum 

Kerreem Khan. ... 

Interregnimi 

Lootf Ali Khan . . 
Aga Mohammed . . 
Fulteh Ali Khan 

(the present king) 



1627 
1641 

1666 
1694 

1722 

1725 

1729 
1732 
1747 
1750 
1753 
1779 
1789 
1795 

1796 



M.'K.cEDON, Kings of. 

B. c. 
Philip, son of Amyn- 

tas 360 

Alexander the Great 336 
Philip Aridaeus. ... 323 

Cassander 316 

^"tip<'vtfr j 293 

Alexander | 

607 



608 



ROYAL DYNASTIES. 



B. C. 

Demetri us 294 

Pyrrhiis 286 

For JG years 12 kings 278 
Antigoiiusl.Gonatus 277 

Demetrius 11 243 

AiitigonuslI.Doson 232 

Philip 221 

Perseus 179 



Fergamus, Kings or. 

Philetserus 283 

Eumenes 1 263 

Attalus 1 241 

Eumenes II 197 

Attalus II. Pbila- 

delphus 159 

Attalus III. Pbjlo- 

uietov 138 



312 

2^0 

261 

246 



Syria, Kings of. 

Seleucus Nicator. . . 
Antiochus I. Soter. . 
Antiochus II. Qets- 
Seleucus II. Calli- 

nicus 

Seleucus III. Cerau- 

nus 226 

Antiochus III. the 

Great 223 

Seleucus IV. Philo- 

pater 187 

Antiochus IV 175 

Antiochus V 164 

Demetriusl. Soter. . 162 
Alexander Balas-.. 150 
Demetrius II. Nica- 
tor 146 

Antiochus VI 144 

Diofiotus 143 

Antiochus VII 139 

Demetrius II. resto- 
ration of 130 

Alexander Zebina. . 127 
Antiochus VIII. ... 123 
Philip and Deme 

trius 

Tigranes, king of 

Armenia 83 

Antiochus IX. Asi- 
aticus 69 



93 



Egypt, Kings or. 

Ptolemy T 323 

Ptolemy II. Phila 
delphus 284 



Ptolemy III. Ever- 

getes 246 

Ptolemy IV. Philo- 

pater 221 

Ptolemy V. Epipha- 

nes 204 

Ptolemy VI. Philo- 

metor 180 

Ptolemy VII. Philo- 

metor 150 

Ptolemy VIII. Phys- 

con 145 

Ptolemy IX. La-) 

thyrus i 

Cleopatra J 

Alexander / 

Cleopatra j ' 

Ptolemy Lathyrus, 

restoration of. .►• 
Cleopatra II. ) 
Alexander II. \ "" 
Ptolemy Alexander 

III 

Ptolemy Dionysitss ) 

Auletes \ 

Ptolemy Dionysi us 1 

11 > 

Cleopatra III J 



116 



106 



81 



51 



JuDEA, Kings of. 



Hyrcanus I. (High 

Priest) 136 

AristobulusI lOS'Decius 



Emperors. 
Augustus 31 

A. D. 

Tiberius 14 

Caligula 37 

Claudius 41 

Nero 54 

Galba 68 

Otho 1 

Vitellius V 69 

Vespasian J 

Titus 79 

Domitian 81 

Nerva 96 

Trajan 98 

Adrian 117 

Antoninus Pius 138 

Marcus Aurelius'l 

and I 161 

Lucius Verus J 

Commodus 180 

Pertinax and Julia- 

nus 193 

Septimius Severus . 193 
Caracalla and Geta 211 
Opilius Macrinus.. 217 
ElagabalusAntonius 218 
Alexander Severus. 222 

Maximinus 235 

The two Gordians . 236 
Maximus.Pupienus, 

and Balbinus 

Gordian junior .... 
Philip the Arabian 



Alexander Jannai. . 104 

Alexandra 78 

Hyrcanus II. and ) ^q 
Aristobulus II. . . j ^^ 
Hyrcanus II 63 



237 
238 
244 
249 



251 



Galliis,Hostilianu8 

Volusianus 

^milianusValeria- 

nusandGallienus 254 
Gallienus alone 260 



Antigonus 40:0iaudii!s 268 



Herodes the Great. 
Archelaus 



Judea, a Roman 

province 8 

Agrippa 37 



Rome, Kings of. 

B. c. 
Romulus 753 

Numa Pompilius. .. 715 
Tullus Hostilius... 672 

Aneus Martins 640 

Tarquinius Priscus 616 
Servius Tullius .... 578 
Tarquinius Superbus 534 
Republic for 461 years. 



276 



Aurelian 270 

Tacitus 275 

Florianus 

Probus 

ftlarcus AureliusCa- 

rus 282 

Dioclesian 284 

Dioclesian andMax- 

imianus 281' 

ConstantiusChlorus 

Galerius Maximi- 

anus 304 

Constantine I. tlie 

Great 306 

Constantine Il.Con- 

stans, and Con- 

stantius 337 

Julian .361 

Jovian .363 

Valentinian I. and 

Valens 364 



ROYAL DYNASTIES. 



609 



B. C. 

Sratian, Valentini- 
an II. and Theo- 

dosius 1 375 

Honorius 395 

Valentinianlll 424 

Maximus 455 

A Vitus 45fj 

Majorianus 457 

fieverus 461 

Antliemius 4(37 

Olybrius 472 

Glycerins 473 

Julius Nepos 474 

Ronmlus Augustus. 475 

Bishops of Rome. 

A. D. 

St. Linus t)7 

St. Cletus, or Ana- 

cletus 78 

St. Clement 1 91 

Evaristus 100 

Alexander 1 108 

Sixtus I Ill) 

Telesphorus 12() 

Hys'nus 137 

PiusI 141 

Anicetus 157 

Soter ItiS 

Eleutherus 177 

Victor 1»2 

Zephirinus 201 

Caiixtus 21!) 

Urban 1 224 

Pontianiis 23J 

Aiiteriiis Fabianus. 235 

Cornelius 251 

Lucius 253 

Stephen 255 

Sixtus II 257 

Dionvsius 259 

Felix" 1 271 

Eutyciiianus 275 

Cains 2H3 

Marcellinus 29G 

Marcellus 304 

Eust'bius 309 

Melchiades 311 

Silvester 314 

Marcus 33'o 

Julius 337 

Liberius 352 

Dauiasus 3(37 

Siricius 3^^5 

Anastatius 308 

innocent 1 402 

Zosinius 417 

Boniface 1 418 

?ffilestinus 423 

Sixtus III 432 

Leo the Saint 440 

Hilary 461 

4iniplicius 467 

Felix II 483 



A. D. 

Gelasius 492 

Anastatius 496 

Synimachus 498 

Hormistlas 514 

John 1 523 

Felix III 526 

Boniface II 530 

John II 5.32 

Agapetus 535 

Sylverius 536 

Vigilius 540 

Pelagius 1 556 

Johi. Ill 560 

Benedict 573 

Pelagius II 577 

Gregory the Great. . 5'JO 

Popes. 

Sabinianus 604 

Boniface HI 606 

Boniface IV 607 

Deusdedit 614 

Boniface V 617 

Honorius 1 626 

Severinus 639 

John IV 639 

Theodorus 641 

Martin 1 649 

Eiigenius 655 

Vitatianiis 655 

Adeodatus 669 

Doninus 676 

Agatlion 678 

Leo II 683 

Benedict II 684 

John V 685 

Conon 686 

Sergius 687 

John VI 701 

John VII 705 

SinsiniusI.Constan- 

tine 708 

Gregory II 714 

Gregory III 731 

Zaciiary 741 

Stephen II. and III. 752 

Paul 1 757 

Stephen IV 768 

Adrian 1 772 

Leo If 1 7i!5 

Stephen V 816 

Pascal 1 817 

Eugenius II 824 

Valentin 827 

Gregory IV 827 

Sergius II 844 

Leo IV 847 

Pope Joan, accord- "j 

ing to some > 854 

Benedict III. J 

Nicholas 1 858 

Adrian II 867 

John VIII 872 



A. D. 

Martin 1 882 

Adrian III 884 

Stephen VI 885 

Fonnosus 891 

i Boniface VI. ) „ 

! Stephen Vil. \ •••• 8y7 

I Theodorus II. ) r,M 
i John IX. J...-901 

Benedict IV 905 

Christopher ( ^^^ 

Sergius HI 907 

! Anastatius III 910 

ILando 912 

John X 913 

Leo VI 928 

Stephen VIII 929 

John XI 931 

Leo VH 936 

Stephen iX 939 

Martin III 943 

Agapetiis II 946 

John XII 955 

Leo VHI 963 

I Benedict V 964 

jjohn XIII 965 

I Doninus II. ) q.j, 

i Benedict VI. j •••• -"^ 

! Boniface VII 974 

Benedict VH 975 

John XIV 984 

'John XV 985 

Gregory V 996 

Silvester II 999 

: John XVI. ) ,„f,o 

John XVH. i ••• ^""-^ 

Sergius IV 1009 

Benedict VHI 1012 

John XVIII 1024 

Benedict IX 1034 

Gregory VI 1044 

Clenieiit 1046 

Damasus II 1048 

I Leo IX 1049 

'Victor II 1054 

' Stephen X 1().'>7 

Nicholas 1 1 1059 

1 Alexander II 1061 

I Gregory VII 1073 

Victor HI 1086 

Urban II 108^ 

Pascal 11 1099 

iGelasusII 1118 

Caiixtus II 1119 

I Honorius II 1124 

I Innocent H 11.30 

Celestine II 1143 

Lucius II 1144 

Eugenius III 1145 

Anastatius IV 1153 

Adrian IV 1154 

Alexander III 1159 

LuciusHI 1181 

Urban III 1185 



610 



ROYAL DYNASTIES. 



A. D. 

Gregory VITI 1187 

Clement III 1188 

Celestin III 1191 

Innocent III 1198 

HonoriusIII 1216 

Gregory IX 12-27 

Celestin IV 1241 

Innocently 1243 

Alexander IV 1254 

Urban IV 1261 

Clement IV • • 1265 

Gregory X 1271 

Innocent V. ^ 

Adrian V. V ... 1276 

John XIX. J 

Nicholas III 1277 

Martin IV 1281 

HonoriusIV 1285 

Nicholas IV 1288 

Celestin V. ) -.oqa 
Boniface VIII. ]'• ^^* 

Benedict X 1303 

Clement V 1365 

John XX 1316 

Benedict XI 1334 

Clement VI 1342 

Innocent VI 1352 

Urban V 1362 

Gregory XI 1370 

Urban VI 1378 

Boniface IX 1389 

Innocent VII 1404 

Gregory XII 1406 

Alexander V 1409 

John XXI 1410 

Martin V 1417 

Eugene IV 1431 

Nicholas V 1447 

Calixtiis III 1455 

Pius II 1458 

Paiilll 1464 

Sixtus IV 1471 

Innocent VIII 1484 

Alexander VI 1492 

^T^^h I 1503 

Julius II. ) 

Leo X 1513 

Adrian VI 1522 

Clement VII 1523 

Paul III 1534 

Julius III 1550 

Marcellus II. ) -.rrtr 

Paul IV. ]■•• ^^^^ 

Pius IV 1560 

Pius V 1566 

Gregory XIII 1572 

Sixtus V 1585 

Urban VII. } j^.q 

Gregory XIV. j •• ^^^" 

Innocent IX 1591 

Clement VIII 1592 

Leo XI. ) -pn^ 

PaulV. i ^605 

Gregory XV.... 1621 



A. D. 

Urban VIII 1623 

Innocent X. . . . 1644 
Alexander VH .. 1655 
Clement IX. . . . 1667 

Clement X 1670 

Innocent XI 1676 

Alexander VUL . . 1689 

Innocent XII 1691 

Clement XI 1700 

Innocent XIII 1721 

Benedict XIII 1724 

Clement XII 1730 

Benedict XIV 1740 

Clement XIII 1758 

Pius VI 1774 

Pius VII 1800 

Leo XII 1822 

Pius VIII 1829 



Emperors of the East. 

Arcadius 395 

TheodosiusII 408 

Marcianus 450 

Leo I. the Thracian 457 
Leo junior II. Zeno 474 
Anastatius the Si- 

lentary 491 

Justinl.theThracian 518 

Justinian 1 527 

Justin II 565 

Tiberius IL...'.... . 578 
Mauricius the Cap- 

padocian 582 

Phocas 602 

Heraclius 610 

Constantine III. ... 641 

Constans II 642 

Constantine IV. Po- 

gonatus 668 

Justinian II 685 

Leontius 694 

Absimerus Tiberius 697 
Justinianllrestored 704 
PhillipicusBardanes 7il 

Anastatius II 713 

Thodosius III 715 

Leo III. Isauricus. . 717 
Constantine V. . . . 742 

Leo IV 775 

Constantine VI. ... 780 

Irene 797 

Nicephorus 802 

fliichael 1 811 

Leo V.the Armenian 813 
Michaelll.the Stam- 
merer 821 

Theophiius 829 

Michael III. the Sot 842 
Basiliiis the Mace- 
donian . . 867 



A. D 

Leo VI. the Philos- 
opher 88C 

ConstantineVII.Por- 

phyrogenitus .... 912 
Romanus with Con- 
stantine 919 

Romanus II 959 

Nicephorus II. Pho- 
cas 963 

John Zimisces 969 

Basilius II. and Con- 
stantine VIIL ... 975 

Romanus lU 1028 

Michael IV 1034 

Michael V 1041 

Constantine IX. . . 1U42 

Theodora 1054 

Michael VI 1056 

Isaac Comnenus . . 1057 
Constantine X.Du- 

cas 1059 

Romanus Diogenes 1068 

Michael VII 1071 

AicephorusIII 1078 

Alexius Comnenus 1081 
John Comnenus, 

KaXoff 1118 

Manuel Comnenus 1143 

Alexius II 1180 

Andronicus 1 1183 

Isaac AngelusCom- 

nenus 1185 

Alexi us m. the Ty- 
rant 1195 

Isaac Angelus re- ) lo^^ 

stored j ^^"^ 

Theodore Lascaris 1204 
JohnDucasVataces 1222 
Theodore Lascaris 

II 1255 

John Lascaris .... 1258 
MichaelPalaeologus 1259 

Andronicus II 1283 

Andronicus IIL.. 1320 
John Palffiologus. . 1341 
John Cantacuzene 1347 
JohnPalaeologus re- 
stored 1355 

Manuel 1391 

John Palaeologus. . 1424 
Constantine Palse- 
ologus 1448 



Khalifs. 

Aboo Beker 632 

Omar 634 

Othman 644 

Ali 656 

Moawiah 660 

Yezid 67& 

Moawiah II 683 



ROYAL DYNASTIES. 



611 



A. D. 

AMalla 684 

Merwan 1 684 

Ahduliiielek 685 

Walid 1 705 

Suleiman 714 

Omar II 717 

Yezid II 719 

Hashem 723 

Walid II 742 

Yezid III 743 

Ibrahim 744 

Merwan II 745 

Saffah 750 

Mansiir 754 

Mohadi 775 

Hadi 785 

Haroon-Er-Rasheed 786 

Amin 809 

Mamiin 813 

Motasim 833 

Watliek 842 

Motawakel 847 

Mostanser 862 

Mostain 862 

Motaz 866 

Mohtadi 869 

Mo tamed i o-jn 

Muaffek 1 ^^" 

Motadhed '.... 892 

Mohtafi 902 

Mnktader 908 

Kaher 932 

Radhi 934 

Motaki 940 

Mostakfi 944 

Moti 946 

Tai 974 

Kader 991 

Kaim 1031 

Moktadi 1075 

Mostadher 1094 

Mnstarshed 1118 

Rasheed 1135 

Moktafi 1136 

Mostanjed 1160 

Mosladhi 1170 

>faser 1180 

Dhaher 1225 

Mostanser 1226 

Mostasein 1242 



Aragon, Kings op. 

Ramires 1035 

Saticho 1067 

Peter 1 10!>4 

Alfonso 1 1104 

Ramires II. the 

Monk 1134 

Petronilia 1138 

AlfonsolI.theChastel 1(;2 
P3terII 1196 



A. D. I 

James I. the Con- i 

qneror 1213 

Peter III 1276 

Alfonso HI. the Be- 
neficent 1285 

James II. the Just 1291 

Alfonso IV 1327 

Peter IV. the Great 1336 

John 1 1387 | 

Martin 1395 

Ferdinand 1 1410 

Alfonso V 1416 

John II 1458 

Ferdinand II 1481 



Castile, Kings of. 

Ferdinand theGreat 1035 

Sancho 1065 

AlfonsoVI.the Val- ' 

iant 1072 

Urraca 1109 

Alfonso VII 1122 

Sancho III 1157 

Alfonso VIII. the 

Noble 1158 

Peter II 1196 

Henry 1 1214 

Alfonso IX 1217 

Ferdinand III 1226 

AlfonsoX.the Wise 1252 

Sancho IV 1284 

Ferdinand IV 12v*5 

Alfonso XI 1312 

Peter the Cruel 1350 

Henryll.theBastard 1369 

John 1 1379 

Henry til 1390 

John II 1406 

Henry IV. the Im- 
potent 1454 

Isabel and Fer- ) ,.-.,. 

dinant V... ' ^^'^ 



Spain, Kings of. 

Charles 1 1516 

Philip II 1555 

Philip III 1598 

Philip IV 162] 

Charles II 16G5 

Philip V 1700 

Ferdinand VI 1746 

Charles III 1756 

Charles IV 1788 

Ferdinand VII 1808 



Portugal, Kings of. 

Alfonso 1 1139 

Saucho 1 llfcS 



A. O. 

Alfonso II 1^12 

Sancho II 1233 

Alfonso II 1 1246 

Dionysiiis 1279 

Alfonso IV 1325 

Peter the Cruel... 1357 

Ferdinand 1367 

Interregnum for 18 

months 1383 

John I. the Bastard 1385 

Edward 1433 

Alfonso V 1438 

John II 1481 

Emmanuel 1495 

John III 1521 

Sebastian 1557 

Henry the Cardinal 1578 
United with Spain 1580 
John IV. Duke of 

Braganza 1640 

Alfonso VI 1656 

Peter II 1668 

John V 1706 

Joseph 1750 

Maria Francisca. . 1777 
John VI 1799 



Naples and Sicilt, 
Kings op. 

Roger U 1 102 

Roger III 1129 

William I. the 

Wicked 1153 

Williainll.theGood 116G 
TancredtheBastard 1189 

William III 1192 

Constance and ) ,.q. 

Henry VI j ' **"* 

Subjected to the 
German Empe- 
rors, till 1250 ... 1 198 

Conrad 1250 

Interregnum 1253 

Manfred... 1254 

Conrad II. ) .„^ 

Charles of Anjou j 

Naples alone. 
CharlesII.theLame 1284 
Robert the Wise . . 1309 

Joan I 1343 

Charles III 1382 

Ladislaus 1386 

Joan II 1414 

Jfaples and Sicily. 
Alfonso, king of 

Aragon 143^ 

Ferdinand J461» 

Alfonso II 149'' 

Ferdinand II 149b 



612 



ROYAL DYNASTIES. 



A. D. 

Frederic 1506 

Becaiioe subject to 
Spai n for 250 years 

Charles VII 1755 

Ferdinand IV 1759 

Francis 1825 



Denmark, Kings of. 

Canute II.theGreat 1014 

Canute III 1036 

Magnus 1041 

SuenoII 1048 

Harold 1074 

CanutelV.the Saint 1076 
Olaus, surnamed 

Hunger 1086 

Eric III. the Good 10J6 

Nicholas 1107 

Eric IV. Harefoot 1135 
EricV. the Lamb.. 1139 
SuenoIII.theGreat 1147 
Magnus III., resto- 
ration of 1147 

Waldemar 1157 

Canute V 1182 

Waldemar II 1202 

Eric VI 1242 

Abel 1250 

Christopher 1252 

Eric VII 1259 

Eric VIII 1286 

Christopher II 1321 

Waldemar III 1333 

Margaret 1375 

EricIX 1412 

Denmark and J^orway 
united. 

Christopher IIL... 1438 

Christian 1 1448 

John 1 1481 

Christian II 1513 

Frederick 1 1522 

Christian III 1533 

Frederick II 1559 

Christian IV 1588 

Frederick III 1648 

Christian V 1670 

Frederick IV 1699 

Christian VI 1730 

Frederick V 1746 

Christian VII 1766 

Frederick VI 1808 



Sweden, Kings of. 

Amund II 1019 

Anuind III 1035 

Haqujn HI.theRed 1041 



A. D. 

Stenchill and Ingo 

III 1059 

Halstan 1064 

Philip 1080 

Ingo IV 11]0 

Ragnald 1129 

Svercher II 1140 

Eric X. the Saint . 1160 

Charles VII 1162 

Canute 1168 

Svercher III 1192 

Eric XI 1210 

John 1218 

Eric XII. the Stut- 
terer 1222 

Waldemar 1250 

Magnus II 1276 

Birger II 1282 

Magnus III 1326 

Albert 1363 

Margaret 1388 

Eric XIII 1396 

Christopher,King of 
Sweden,Denmark, 

and Norway 1438 

Charles VIII 1448 

Interregnum, thir- 
teen years 1470 

John, King of Den- 
mark 1483 

Christian II 1513 

Gustavus L Vasa. . 1523 

Eric XIV 1560 

John III 1568 

Sigismund, king of 

Poland 1592 

Charles IX 1598 

Gustavus II. Adol- 

phus 1612 

Christina 1632 

Charles X 1654 

Charles XI 1660 

Charles XII 1696 

FrederickandUlrica 1718 
Adolphus Frederick 1751 

Gustavus III 1771 

Gustavus IV 1792 

Charles XIII 1H09 

Charles John 1818 



Poland, Kings or. 

Premislaus 1295 

Vladislaus IV 1296 

Wenceslaus 1300 

Vladislaus IV 1305 

Casimir III. the 

Great 1333 

Lewis, King of 

Hungary 1370 

Interregnum of 3 

vears 1383 



A. O. 

Jagellon and Vladis- 
laus IV 1.386 

Vladislaus V 1434 

Interregnum of 3 

years 1444 

Casimir IV 1447 

John I. Albert 1492 

Alexander 1501 

Sigismund 1 1507 

Sigismund II. Au- 
gustus. 1548 

Henry of Anjou . . . 1573 

Stephen Balore 1576 

Sigismund III 1587 

Vladislaus VI 1632 

John II. Casimir. . 1648 

Michael 1669 

John Ill.Sobieski. 1674 

Augustus II 1697 

Frederick Augus- 
tus III 1734 



Russia, Tsars op. 

Fedor. 1585 

Boris Godunof 1598 

Interregnum 1C04 

Michael 1613 

Alexi 1645 

Fedor II 1676 

Sophia, Ivan, and ) ,pa„ 

Peter the Great \ ^^"'^ 
Peter the Great 

alone 1696 

Catherine 1725 

Peter II 1727 

Anne 1730 

Ivan III 1740 

Elizabeth 1741 

Peter III. 1762 

Catherine II 1762 

Paul 1796 

Alexander 1801 

Nicholas... 1825 



France. 

Merovingians. 

Clovis 481 

Childebert .. 511 

Ciotaire 558 

Caribert 562 

Chilperic 567 

Ciotaire II 584 

Dagobert 628 

Clovis II 644 

Ciotaire III 660 

ChildericII 668 

Thierri 673 

Clovis III 690 



ROYAL DYNASTIES. 



613 





A. D. 


'^hildpHerl II. . 


- . . 695 


L*»40l>»;lt 11 


.. 711 


Ch.lDe-ic II. . . 


.. 716 


IL.erri II 


.. 720 


Childeric lei. . 


...742 



Carlovingiuns. 

Pepin 751 

Charlemagne 768 

Lewis I le Deboiiaire 814 
Charles tlie Bald. 840 
Lewis II. the Stam- 
merer 877 

Lewis III. and Car 

loman 879 

Charles tke Fat 884 

Eudes 888 

Charles the Simple.. 898 

Rodolph 923 

Lewis IV. Outremer 936 

Lothaire 5 54 

Lewis V 986 

Capetians. 

Hugh Capet 987 

Robert I. the Wise. 996 

Henry 1 1031 

PhilipI.TAmoureux 1061 
Lewis VI. the Fat. 1108 
LewisVII.theYoungll37 
Philipll. Augustus. 1180 
LewisVni.theLion 1223 
Lewis IX.the Saint 1226 
Philip III the Bold 1270 
Philip IV. the Fair 1285 

Lewis X 1314 

John I. {lived but 8 

days) 1315 

Philip V. the Long 1316 
CharlesIV. the Fair 1321 

House of Valois. 
Philip Vl.ofValois, 
the Fortunate . . 1328 

John I'i 1351 

CharlesV^. the Wise 1364 
Charles VI. the Be- 
loved 1380 

CharlesVII.theVic- 

torious 1422 

LewisXI 1461 

Charles VIII 1483 

Lewis XII 1498 

Francis 1 1515 

Henry II 1547 

Francis II 1559 

Charles IX 1560 

Henry III 1574 

House of Bourbon. 
Henry IV. the Great 1589 

Lewis XIII 1610 

Lewis XIV 1643 

52 



A. D. 

Lewis XV 1715 

Louis XVI 1774 

Louis XVII 1793 

Louis XVIII 1796 

Charles X 1824 



England, Kings op. 

Anglo-Saxon Line. 

Egbert 828 

Ethelwolf 838 

Ethelbald 857 

Ethelbert 860 

Ethelred 1 866 

Alfred the Great ... 872 
Edward the Elder. . 900 

Athelstan 925 

Edmund 1 941 

Edred 948 

Edwy 955 

Edgar the Peaceable 95i) 
Edwardll.theMartyr 975 
Ethelred II. the Un- 
ready 978 

Edmundll.lronside 1016 
Canute the Great, 

King of Denmark 1017 
HaroldHarefoot... 1036 
Canute II. Hardi- 

canute 1039 

Edward III. the 

Confessor 1041 

Harold II 1066 

J^orman Line. 
William the Con- 
queror 1066 

William IL Rufus 1087 

Henry 1 1100 

Stephen of Blois.. 1135 

House of Plantagevet. 

Henry II. Planta- 
genet 1154 

Richard 1. Cceur de 
Lion 1189 

John Lackland 1199 

Henry III. of Win- 
chester 1216 

Edward I. Long 
Shanks 1272 

Edward II. of Caer- 
narvon 1307 

Edward III. of 
Windsor 1327 

Richard II. of Bour- 
deaux 1377 

Henry IV.ofBoling- 
broke 1399 

Henry V. of Mon- 
mouth 1413 



A. D. 

Henry VL of Wind- 
sor 1422 

Edward IV 1461 

Edward V. 1 

Richard in. V... 1483 
Crook Back J 

House of Tudor. 

Henry VII 14a5 

Henry VIII 1509 

Edward VI 1547 

Mary 1553 

Elizabeth 1558 

Great Britain. 

House of Stuart. 

James 1 1603 

Charles 1 1625 

Commonwealth... 1649 

Charles II 1660 

James II 1685 

William IIL and 

Mary 1689 

Anne 1702 

House of Brunswick. 

George 1 1714 

George II 1727 

George III 1760 

George IV 1820 



Scotland, Kings of, 

Malcolm II 1004 

Duncan 1034 

Macbeth 1040 

Malcolm III. Cean 

Mohr 1056 

Donald Bane 1093 

Duncan II 1095 

Edgar 1098 

Alexander 1 1107 

David 1 1124 

Malcolm IV 1153 

William 1166 

Alexander II 1214 

Alexander III.. .. 1249 
Interregnum of 7 

years 1286 

John Baliol 1292 

Interregnum 1301 

Robert Bruce 1306 

David II 1329 

Robert II 1371 

Robert III 1390 

James 1 1406 

James II 1437 

James III '. . 1460 

James IV 1488 

James V 1513 



614 



ROYAL DYNASTIES. 



▲. D. 

Mary 1542 

James VI 1507 

Germany, Emperors of. 

Arnulf 888 

Lewis III yOO 

Conrad 912 

Henry I. the Fowler 920 
Otho I. the Great . . 936 
Otho II. the Bloody 973 
Otho III. the Red . . 983 
Henry II. the Lame 1002 
Conrad II. the Sa- 

lique 1024 

Henrylll.the Black 1039 

Henry IV 105G 

Henry V llOti 

Lotliario the Saxon 1125 

Conrad III 113f^ 

Frederick I. ) - ^ _^ 

Barbarossa \ 

HenryVI.theSevere 1190 

Philip 1198 

Otho IV 1208 

Frederick II 1212 

William 1250 

Interregnum for 17 

years 1256 

Rodolph of Habs- 
burg, first of the 
Austrian Family 1273 
Adolphus of Nassau 1291 
Albert I. of Austria 1298 
Interregnum I year 1308 
Henry VII. of Lux- 

eniburgh 1309 

Lewis IV. the Ba- 
varian 1314 

Charles IV. of Lux- 

enihtirgh 1347 

Wenceslaus 1378 

Rupert 1400 

Jossus 1 

Sigismund, King > 1410 
of Hungary J 



A. D. 

Albertll.of Austria 1438 

Frederick III 1440 

Maximilian 1 1493 

Charles V 1519 

Ferdinand 1 1558 

Maximilian II .. 1564 

Rodolph II 1576 

Mathias 1612 

Ferdinand II 1619 

Ferdinand III 1637 

Leopold 1658 

Joseph 1705 

Charles VI 1711 

Charles VII 1741 

Francis 1 1745 

Joseph II 1765 

Leopold n 1790 

Francis II 179^ 



Prdssia, Kings of. 

Frederic 1 1701 

FredericWilliam L 1713 

Frederic II 1740 

FredericWilliamll. 1786 
Frederic Wilm. in. 1797 



Ottoman Emperors. 

Osman 1298 

Orchan 1325 

Moorad, or Amu- 
rath 1 1358 

Bayezeed 1 1389 

Interregnum 1402 

Mohammed 1 1413 

Amurath II 1421 

Mohammed II 1451 

Bayezeed II 1481 

Selim 1 1512 

Suleiman 1 1520 

Selimll 1566 



A. D 

Amurath III 1574 

Mohammed III. . . 159^ 

Ahmed 1 1604 

Mustafa 1C17 

Amurath IV. . , 1622 

Ibrahim 1640 

Mohammed rV 1655 

Suleiman II 1687 

Ahmed II 1690 

Mustafa II 1695 

Ahmed III 1703 

Mahraood 1 173C 

Mustafa HI 1757 

Abdul Ahmed 1774 

Selim III 1789 

Mustafa IV. ) .^na 
Mahraood XL J ' ' ' ^°^° 



Chinese D\KAt>TiES. 

Hia B. c. 

Chang 

Chew 35 Emperors 1122 

Tsin 4—248 

Western Han 25 — 206 



Eastern Han . 2 • 
Eastern Tsin . 10 

Song 8- 

Tsi 5 

Leang 4 

Chien 5 

Song or Svee. 3- 

Tang 20 

Second Leang 2- 
Second Tang. 5- 
Second Tsin.. 2- 

Han 2- 

SecondChew. 3- 

Song 18- 

Yven 9- 

Ming 16- 

TaiTsin 5- 



A. D. 

- 238 

- 265 

- 420 
-480 

- 502 

- 5t 

- 590 

- 618 

- 911 

- 924 

- 937 

- 948 

- 951 

- 960 
-1280 
-1368 



EMINENT PERSONS. 



Name. Floarished. 

B. C. 

Homer 907 

Hesiod 907 

Elijah 896 

Lycurgus 883 

Elisha 846 

Isaiah 768 

Eiiniehu 736 

Sappho.. 601 



Name. 



Flourished. 



Epimenides of Crete 594 

Jeremiah 594 

^sop 578 

Cadmus 562 

Solon 561 

Thales 559 

Ibycus 552 

Anaximander 550 



Name. Flourished. 

n. c. 

Theognis 548 

Pythagoras 522 

A nacreon 520 

Zoroaster 519 

Heraclitus 516 

Diogenes 476 

.(Eschylus 475 

Zeno the Elder 4''4 



Name. Flourished. 

B. C. 

Pindar 455 

Aristarchus 453 

Leticippiis 452 

Anaxagoias 452 

Cliaroxi of Lainpas 

CDS 449 

Herodotus 444 

Aristippus 432 

Euripides 427 

Sopiiocles 42() 

Socrates 41i) 

Tliucydides 417 

Aristopliaiies 41ti 

Ctesias 41ti 

Metoii 415 



EMINENT PERSONS. 

Name. Flourished. 

B. C. 

Damon and Pythias 397 

Lvsias 3';)() 

^Pelopidas 395! 

Hippocrates 381 

Xenoplion 379 

Plalo 313B 

Eudoxus 352 

Aristotle 351 

Xenocrates 314 

Euclid 2:i8 

Theoplirastus 2t^5 

Epicurus 28rt 

Calliniachus 244 

Arcliiniedes 239 

Terence 179 



615 

Name. Flourished. 

P. C. 

Critolaus HiO 

Lucilius 128 

Ciuna 100 

Possidonius H5 

JuUusCffisar. 64 

Cicero 63 

Sallust 55 

Diodorus Siculus. . . 44 
Cornelius Nepos ... 43 

Virgil 42 

Horace 28 

Livv 20 

Ovid 10 

Celsus 10 

Strabo • 5 



NamCk Birth. Death. 

A. D. A. D. 

Dante.. l-2»5. 1321 

Petrarch 1304. 1374 

Boccacio 1313. 1375 

Chaucer 1328. 1400 

Froissart. ■*•• 1339. 1400 

Gower 1402 

Mullor 147*) 

Lorenzo de Medici 1448. 1492 

Gawin Douglas 1474. 1522 

Machiavel 1409. 1527 

D'Ercilla i532 

Ariosto 1474. 1533 

Erasmus 1407. 1530 

Paracelsus 14 '3. 1541 

Cloueniicus 1473. 1543 

Luther 1483. 154G 

Howard, Earl of Surrey 1515. 1540 

Rabelais 14<~3. 1553 

J. (\ Scalii?er 1484. 1558 

Melancthon 1497. 151)0 

Vesalius 1514. 1504 

Vida 1480. 1560 

Aschani 1515. 15(58 

Peter Ramus 1515. 1572 

Conimaudine 1509. 1575 

Cardan 1501. 1570 

Canjnens 1524. 1579 

Buchanan 1500. 15.'^2 

Sir P. Sidney 1554. 1580 

Montaigne 1533. 1592 

Tasso 1544. 1595 

Henry Stephens 1528. 1598 

Spenser l-i53. 15)9 

Tycho Brahe 1546. 1001 

Henry Carey, Earl of 

Monmouth 1596. 1616 

J. J. Sealiiier 1540. 1(109 

Clavius ..^ 1537. 1012 

Beaumont 1586. lOlo 

Shakspeare 1564. 1616 

Cervantes 1547. 1016 

Napier 1550. 1617 



Name. Birth. Death. 

A. D. A. D 

Paul Sarpi 1552. 1619 

Camden 1551. 1625 

John Fletcher 1576. 1625 

Bacon 1500-1. 1026 

Sir W. Temple 1626 

Mallierbe 1555. 1628 

Kepler 1571. 1030 

Da Vila 1576. 1031 

Drayton 1503. 1031 

Carey 1033 

Lopez de la Vega 1562. 1035 

Ben .lonson 1574. 1037 

Martin Opits 1597. 1039 

Massinger 1584. 1040 

Sir John Suckling 1009. 1041 

Galileo 1504. 1042 

Chilliiigvvorth 1002. 1044 

Grotius 1583. 1645 

Torricelli 1008. 1047 

Drunimond 1585. 1049 

Des Cartes 1596. 1050 

[nigo .loues '•• 1572. 1053 

A rch. Usher 1580. 1(555 

Lovelace 1018. 1058 

Harvey 1569. 1658 

Scarron 1610. 16()0 

Pascal 1023. 1662 

Cowley 1018. 1667 

Davenant 1605. 1068 

Moliere 1020. 1673 

Milton 1008. 1674 

Spinoza 1623. 1677 

Barrow • • • 1030. 1678 

Rochefoucault 1013. 1680 

Butler 1034. 1081 

Corneille lOOfi. 1684 

Otway 1052. 1085 

Boyle. 1020-7 169] 

Puffendorf 1031 1694 

Huygens 1629. 1635 

Fontaine 1021. 1095 

De la Bruyere 1044. 1690 



616 



EMINENT PERSONS. 



Name. Birth. Death. 

A. D. A. D. 

Racine 1639. 1699 

Dryden 1631. 1700 

Hooke 1635. 1702 

Locke 1632. 1704 

Beir.ouilli 1654. 1705 

Aline Dacier 1651. 1707 

Farqiiliar 1678. 1707 

Boileau 1636. 17J1 

Fcnelon 1651. 1715 

Charles Montague, Earl 

of Halifax 1661. 1716 

Gionovius 1645. 1716 

Flainsteed 1646. 1719 

Addison 1672 1720 

Prior 1664. 1721 

Sir Christopher Wren.. 1632. 1725 

Rapin 1661. 1725 

Newton 1642. 1727 

Steele 1671. 1729 

Congreve 1670. 1729 

Atterbury 1662. 1732 

James Hermann 1678. 1733 

Boerhaave 1668. i/38 

Wolfe 1739 

Halley 1656. 1741 

Rollin 1661. 1741 

Bentley 1661-2. 1742 

Massillon 1663. 1742 

Pope 1688. 1744 

Swift 1667. 1745 

Walpole 1676. 1745 

Maclaurin 1698. 1746 

Thomson 1700. 1748 

Giannone 1676. 1749 

Monroe 1715. 1751 

Berkely 1684. 1753 

Fielding 1707. 1754 

Montesquieu 1689. 1755 

Fontenelle 1657. 1757 

Colley Gibber 1671. 1757 

Allan Ramsay 1685. 1758 

Kleist 1715. 1759 

Richardson 1689. 1760 

T.Simpson 1710. 1761 

Lady Montague 1690. 1762 

Bradley 16U2. 1762 

Shenstone 1714. 1763 

Sinison 1687. 1768 

Sterne 1713. 1768 

Chatterton 1752. 1770 

Smoliet 1711. 1771 

Reiske 1716. 1774 

Goldsmith 1728. 1774 

Haller 1708. 1776 

Hume 1732. 1776 

Rousseau 1711. 1777 

Linnteus 1707. 1778 

Voltaire 1694. 1778 

Garrick 1716. 1779 

Lessing 1729. 1781 



Name. Birth. Death. 

A. D. A. D. 

Metastasio 1698. 1782 

William Hunter 1718. 1783 

Euler 1707. 1783 

Dr. Johnson 1709. 1784 

D'Alembert 1717. 1784 

Diderot 1713. 1784 

BufFon 1707. 1788 

Cullen 1712. 1789 

Dr. Franklin 1706. 1790 

Warton 1728 1790 

Adam Smith 1723. 1791 

Snieaton 1724. 1792 

Robertson 1721. 1793 

J. Hunter 1728. 1793 

Condorcet 1743. 1794 

Lavoisier 174.3. 1794 

Sir W.Jones 1746. 1794 

Gibbon 1737. 1794 

Goldoni 1707. 1795 

Burns 1759. 1796 

Macpherson 1738. 1796 

Raid 1710. 1796 

Horace Walpole 1718. 1797 

Marmontel 1723. 1799 

Black 1728. 1799 

Cowper « 1731. 1600 

Blair 1718. 1800 

Lavater 1741. 1801 

Fordyce 1736. 1802 

Darwin 1721. 1802 

Alfieri 1749. 1803 

Klopstock 1724. 1803 

Herder 1741. 1803 

Priestley 1733. 1804 

Kant 1724. 1804 

Paley 1743. 1805 

Cottin 1772. 1807 

Porson 1759. 1808 

Holcroft 1744. 1809 

Cumberland 17.32. 1811 

Hevne 1729. 1812 

Lagrange 1736. 1813 

Wieland 1733. 1813 

Sheridan 1751. 1816 

Kirk White 1785. 1816 

Richter 1792. 1817 

De Stael 1766. 1817 

Stolberg 1715. 1818 

Playfair 1749. 1819 

Wolcot 1738. 1819 

Watt 1736. 1819 

Kotzebue 1761. 1819 

Herschel 1738. 1821 

Shelley 1792. 1822 

Byron 1788. 1824 

Voss 1751. 1826 

Volta 1743. 1826 

Laplace 182? 

Woilaston 1828 

Young 



IMPORTANT EVENTS. 



617 



CHRONOLOGICAL VIEW OF IMPORTANT EVENTS. 



B. C. 

The First Olympiad 776 

Commencement of the Decen- 
nial Archons at Athens 754 

Foundation of Rome 753 

The Rape of the Sabines 750 

Xth Olympiad 747 

Commencement of the Nabonas- 

sariEra 747 

The first Messenian War 743 

Foundation of Tarentum 707 

Foundation of Corcyra 703 

XXth Olympiad 700 

The second Messenian War. . . . 685 
Commencement of the Annual 

Archons at Athens 684 

Junction of Babylon and Assy- 
ria by Esarhaddon 681 

Combat of the Horatii and Cu- 

riatii 667 

XXXth Olympiad 660 

Foundation of Byzantium 658 

Foundation of Cyrene 630 

Establishment of Draco's Laws 

at Athens 623 

XLth Olympiad 620 

Connnencement of Necho's 
Canal between the Nile and 

Red Sea 610 

Destruction of Nineveh 606 

Separation of the Medes and 
Lydians in Battle by an 

Eclipse of the Sun 601 

(Newton's Chron. 585) 
Establishment of the Pythian 

Games 591 

Restoration of the Isthmian 

Games 582 

Llh Olympiad 580 

Restoration of the Nemean 

Games 568 

first Comedy performed at 

Athens 562 

LXth Olympiad 540 

Tragedies first acted at Athens 535 
Conquest of Egypt by Cambyses 525 
The Temple of Jerusalem fin- 
ished 515 

Restoration of the Democracy 

at Athens 510 

Expulsion of the Tarquins, and 
Abolition of Regal Govern- 
ment at Rome 509 

First Alliance between the Ro- 
mans and Carthaginians .... 508 

LXXth Olympiad 500 

Institution of the Saturnalia at 

Roma 497 

Creation of the first Dictator at 
Home 496 

52* 



B. C. 

First Tribunes of the People 
created at Rome 494 

Banishment of Coriolanus 491 

Institution of the Q,ujEstors at 
Rome 484 

Defeat of the Spartans at Ther- 
mopylae and Saiamis 480 

Rebuilding of Athens by The- 
mistocles 476 

Foundation of Capua 469 

The third Messenian War ..... 465 

LXXXth Olympiad 460 

Number of Tribunes at Rome 
increased from Five to Ten . . 453 

Creation of the Decemvirs at 
Rome 448 

First Sacred War concerning 
the Temple of Delphi 448 

Death of Virginia 448 

Institution of the Censorship 
at Rome 437 

Meton's Nineteen Years' Cycle 
of the Moon 432 

Commencement of the Pelopon- 
nesi an War 431 

XCth Olympiad 420 

Agrarian Law first moved in 
Rome 416 

Athens governed by the Council 
of 400 412 

Conclusion of the Peloponne- 
sian War 405 

Athens governed by Thirty Ty- 
rants 404 

The Expulsion of the Thirty 
Tyrants 401 

Rome taken by the Gauls under 
Brcnnus 385 

Cth Olympiad 380 

Commencement of the second 
Sacred War 357 

End of the Sacred War 348 

Commencement of the War be- 
tv\'een the Romans and Sam- 
niles 343 

CXth Olympiad 340 

Destruction of Thebes by Alex- 
ander 336 

Division of Alexander's Em- 
pire 323 

iEra of the Seleucidae 312 

Foundation of Antioch, Edessa, 
and Laodicea 300 

CXXth Olympiad 300 

Athens taken by Demetrius Fo- 
liorcetes 298 

The first Division of Time into 
Hours by the Sun-dial of Pa- 
pirius Cursor 293 



618 



IMPORTANT EVENTS. 



B. C. 

Astronomical ^ra of Dionysius 

of Alexandria 285 

Foundation of the Alexandrian 

Library 283 

The first Punic War 264 

CXXXth Olympiad 260 

First Naval Victory of the Ro- 
mans over the Carthaginians 260 
End of the First Punic War ... 242 
Comedies first acted at Rome . • 240 
Temple of Janus closed for the 

first Time after Numa 235 

CXLth Olympiad 220 

The second Punic War 218 

End of the second Punic War. . 201 
The first Macedonian War . . . . . 200 

OLth Olympiad 180 

The second Macedonian War. . 171 

The third Punic War 149 

Destruction of Carthage by the 

Romans 146 

CLXth Olympiad 140 

The Jugurthine War Ill 

CLXXth Olympiad 100 

Cyren6 bequeathed to the Ro- 
mans by Ptolemy Appion 97 

The Social or MarsicWar begins 91 
Beginning of the Mithridatic 

War 89 

Syria reduced to a Roman 

Provi nee 65 

The Catiline Conspiracy de- 
tected 63 

CLXXXth Olympiad 60 

Ponipey, Crassus, and Csesar, the 

first Triumvirate 59 

First Invasion of Caesar in Brit- 
ain 55 

His second Invasion 54 

The iEra of Antioch com- 
mences 49 

The second Triumvirate 43 

Mauritania reduced to a Roman 

Province 33 

End of the Commonwealth of . 

Rome 31 

CXCth Olympiad 20 

▲. o. 
Birth of our Savior, Decem- 
ber 25, four Years before the 

Common JEra 4 

The End of the Passover 8 

The Jews banished from Rome 

by Tiberius 19 

CCth Olympiad 21 

CCIst Olympiad 25 

End of the Olympiads 26 

Christ crucified 33 

Conversion of St. Paul 36 

The Name of Christians first 
given to the Followers of 

Christ 40 

Caraciacus brought in Chains 
to Rome . • ■ 51 



A. D 

The first Persecution of .he 
Christians 63 

Jerusalem taken and destroyed 
by Titus 70 

Destruction of Herculaneum 
and Pompeii by an Eruption 
of Vesuvius 79 

Agricola's Invasion of Britain 80 

The second Persecution of the 
Christians... ... 95 

Reduction of Dacia to a Roman 
Province 103 

The third Persecution of the 
Christians 107 

The fourth Persecution of the 
Christians 113 

Jerusalem rebuilt by Adrian. .. 130 

The Persecutions against the 
Christians stopped by Anto- 
ninus 152 

War with the Marcomanni .... 169 

The Saracens defeat the Romans 189 

Fifth Persecution of the Chris- 
tians 201 

The Goths receive an annual 
Tribute not to invade Rome . 222 

The sixth Persecution of the 
Christians 235 

The seventh Persecution against 
the Christians under Decius . 250 

The eighth Persecution of tlie 
Christians 257 

Period of the Thirty Tyrants . . 258 

The ninth Persecution of the 
Christians 272 

Partition of the Roman Empire 
between two Emperors and 
two Caesars 292 

Tenth Persecution of the Chris- 
tians 302 

Christianity tolerated 313 

The first general Council as- 
sembled at Nice 325 

The seat of Empire removed to 
Constantinople 329 

The Empire divided between the 
three Sons of Constan tine. .• 337 

Council of Rimini held 359 

The second general Council held 
at Constantinople 381 

The final Departure of the Ro- 
mans from Britain 426 

The third general Council held 
at Ephesus 431 

The Saxons first come to Britain 448 

The fourth general Council of 
Chalcedon 451 

Foundation of Venice 452 

Rome taken by Genseric 455 

Paris the Capital of the French 
Dominions 510 

Introduction of the Computa- 
tion of Time by the Christian 
^ra 516 



IMPORTANT EVENTS. 



619 



A. D. 

Rome taken by BHisarius 539 

Suppression of the Roman 

Coiisalship 542 

The fifth general Council 555 

Birth of Mohammed 571 

Jerusalem taken by the Per- 
sians 616 

The Alexandrian Library 

burned 640 

Cyprus taken by the Saracens. 648 
The sixth genera! or CEcumeni- 
cal Council of Constanti- 
nople 680 

Spain conquered by the Sara- 
cens 713 

Foundation of Bagdad 762 

Charlemagne puts an End to 
the Kingdom of the Lom- 
bards 774 

The seventh general Council, 

or second of Nice 787 

New Empire of the West 800 

The Saxon Heptarchy united, 

• called England 828 

Origin of the Russian Mon- 
archy 839 

The Scots and Picts united un- 
der the Title of Scotland ... 843 
Oxford University founded .. . 886 
Cambridge University founded 915 
Rise of the Republic of Pisa . . 931 
The Danes get Possession of 

England 1013 

Rise of the Guelfs and Ghib- 

illins 1061 

William the Conqueror begins 

Doomsday Book 1079 

The first Crusade 10^6 

Institution of the Knights 

Templars 1118 

The Canon Le«w introduced 

into England 1140 

The second Crusade 1147 

Institution of TeutonicKnights 1J64 
Conquest of Ireland by Henry 

II 1172 

The third Crusade 1J89 

The fourth Crusade 1202 

Establishment of the Inquisi- 
tion 1204 

Magna Charta granted 1215 

The Orders of St. Dominic and 

Francis instituted 1226 

The fifth Crusade 1248 

Deputies of Boroughs first sum- 
moned to Parliament in Eng- 
land 1264 

Jonquest of Wales by Ed- 
ward 1 1283 

End of the Crusades 1291 

The first Celebration of the Ju- 
bilee at Rome 1293 

The Establishment of theSwiss 
Republics ..... 1307 



A. D. 

Removal of the Seat of the 

Popes to Avignon 1.^08 

The Institution of the Order of 

the Garter 1.349 

Return of the Popes to Rome. 1377 
Foundation of the University 
of St. Andrew's in Scot- 
land 1411 

Discovery of the Island of Ma- 
deira 1420 

TheCourt of Session insti4:uted 

in Scotland 1425 

Rise of the Medici family 1431 

Pragmatic Sanction in France 1439 

Invention of Printing 1440 

Establishment of the Author- 
ity of Lorenzo de Medici . . . 1478 
Discovery of the Cape of Good 

Hope 1487 

Discovery of Hispaniola 1492 

Discovery of America 1492 

Discovery of Brazil 1500 

Discovery of Madagascar 1.507 

League of Cambray 1509 

Luther commences the Reform- 
ation 1517 

First Voyase round the World 1522 

Treaty of Madrid 1526 

Peace of Cambray 1529 

Reformation in England 1534 

The Council of Trent, which 

continues eighteen Years. . • 1545 
Treaty of Chateau Cambresis. 1559 
The Massacre of St. Bartholo- 
mew 1572 

The Union of Utrecht 1579 

Discovery of Virginia 1584 

The Spanish Armada destroyed 1588 
Foundation of Dublin Univer- 
sity 1591 

Rebellion of Tyrone in Ireland 1598 
English East India Company 

established 1600 

Union of the Crowns of Eng- 
land and Scotland 1603 

Hudson's Bay discovered 1610 

The first Baronets in England 1611 

Foundation of Batavia 1621 

The first English Settlement in 

the West Indies 1625 

The French Academy instituted 1635 

Rebellion in Ireland 1641 

Civil War begins in England . 1642 
First War between the Eng- 
lish and Dutch 1652 

The Royal Societv instituted. 1682 

The Second Dutch War 1664 

Great Plague in London 1665 

Fire of London 1666 

Institution of the Academy of 

Sciences in France 1666 

Carolina planted by the Eng- 
lish 1676 

Habeas Corpus Act passed 1678 



620 



IMPORTANT EVENTS. 



A. D. 

Foundation of Petersburg 1704 

Consummation of the Union be- 
tween England and Scotland- 1706 

Peace of Utrecht 1714 

Quadruple Alliance 1718 

The Order of the Bath instituted 1725 

Pragmatic Sanction 1732 

Peace of Vienna 1738 

Defensive Alliance between 

Great Britain and Prussia- •• • 1742 
Alliance between Great Britain 

and Russia 1743 

Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle 1748 

Foundation of the Academy of 

Sciences at Stockholm 1750 

The British Museum established 1753 
Destruction of Lisbon by an 

Earthquake 1755 

Quebec taken by General Wolfe 1759 
Montreal and Canada taken by 

the British 1760 

Foundation of the Royal Aca^ 

demy of Arts in London 1768 

Commencement of American 

War 1774 

Declaration of American Inde- 
pendence 1776 — 1783 

French Revolution 1787 

Louis XVI. beheaded 1793 

Rebellion in Ireland 1798 

Bonaparte First Consul 1799 

Union of the Irish and English 

Parliaments 1800 

Insurrection in Dublin 1803 

Bonaparte Emperor 1804 

Abolition of the Slave Trade- • • 1806 
Divorce of Bonaparte from Jo- 
sephine 1809 

Appointment of the Prince of 

Wales to the Regency 1811 

The Burning of Moscow 1812 

Bonaparte returns from Russia 1812 
Creation of the Office of Vice 
Chancellor of Great Britain- • 1813 

Abdication of Bonaparte 1814 

A J ubilee Festival, in Celebration 
of Peace, and the Centenary of 

the House of Brunswick 1814 

Congress at Vienna 1814 

Treaty of Peace between Eng- 
land and America 1814 

Bonaparte from Elba takes pos- 
session of Paris 1815 

Battle of Waterloo 1816 

Commencement of the Revolu- 
tion in Spain 1820 

Death of George III. 1820 

Trial of Queen Caroline 1820 

Death of Napoleon 1821 

Commencement of the Greek 
Revolution 1821 



A. D 

Battle of Navarino 1827 

Repeal of the Test Act 1828 

Bill passed for the Emancipa- 
tion of Roman Catholics 1829 

Revolution in France 1830 

War between Holland and Bel- 
gium 1831 

Civil War in Portugal 1832 

Meeting of the Reformed Parliar 

ment in England 1832 

Asiatic Cholera appears • • 1832 

Civil War in Spain 1833 

The Quadruple Alliance con- 1834 

eluded 1834 

Francis II. of Austria dies 1835 

Seminole War in the United 

States 1836 

Victoria becomes Queen of Great 

Britain 1837 

War between France and Mexico 1838 
War between Russia and Turkey 

renewed 1839 

Removal of Napoleon's Remains 

to France 1840 

War between Great Britain and 

China 1841 

The Maine Boundary Question 

settled 1842 

Espartero driven from Spain- • 1843 
Texas annexed to the United 

States 1845 

War between Mexico and the 

United States 1846 

General Taylor repulses Santa 

Anna at Buena Vista 1847 

General Scott captures the City 

of Mexico 1847 

Overthrow of the French Mo- 
narchy 1848 

Republic established at Rome- - 1848 
Insurrections of Democrats 

throughout Germany 1848 

Destructive Famine in Ireland- 1848 
California and New Mexico an- 
nexed to the United States- • 1848 
Discovery of the immense Mine- 
ral Wealth of California 1848 

Great Chartist Demonstration in 

England 1848 

Terrible Insurrection in Paris- • 1848 
Louis Napoleon Bonaparte 

elected President of France- • 1848 
Capture of Rome by the French 1849 
Hungarian Struggle for Nation- 
ality 1849 

Return of Pius IX. to Rome 1849 

Asiatic Cholera appears 1849 

Passage of the Bill for Compro- 
mising the Slavery Question 

in the United States 1850 

Death of President Taylor 1850 



INDEX. 



Abbas the Great, 449. 

Abbasside Khalifs, 237. 

Abercrombie, Sir Ralph, 443. 

Abco Beker, 209. 214. 

Aboo Taleeb. 208. 

Abraham, 30. 

AchEcans, 46. 

Addicti. 93. 

Adolf. 182. 

Adrian VI., 403. 

.Ethiopians, 17. 

Africa, 221. 

Agathocles, 113. 

Agesilaus, 64. 

Atrrarian law, 94. 

Aix-la-Chapelle, peace of, 487. 

Alaric, 182. 

Alcazar-quivir, battle of, 426. 

Alcibiades, 61. 

Alexandt^r the Great, 69. 

Alexander VI., Pope, 383. 

Alexander of Russia, 527. 

Alexandria, 69. 220. 

Alexius of Constantinople, 285. 

Alfonso X., the Wise, of Castile, 371. 

Alfonso of Portugal. 305. 

Alfred of England, 244. 

Ali. 214. 

Alj iibarrota, battle of, 373. 

Allenianni, 195. 

Alliance, the Grand, 465. 

Alliance, the Quadruple, 475. 

Almohades, the, 305. 

Almoravites, 257. 

Alp Arslan, 281. 

Alva, Duke of, 419. 

America, discovery of, 374. 

Amphictyonic Council, 68. 

Amroo, 215. 

Anastasius, 202. 

Andrew III. of Hungary, 362. 

Anglo-Saxons, 199. 

Angora, battle o^ 368. 

Anne, Queen of England, 465. 

Annibal, 114. 

Antalcidas, peace of, 63. 

Antigonus Gonatus, 73. 

Antiochus the Great, 116. 

Antoninus, Marcus Aurelius, 160. 

Antoninus the Pious, 160. 

Antonius, Marcus, 147. 

Appius Claudius, 98. 

Apulia, Duke of, 267. 

Arabia, 30. Khalifs of, 261. 



Aragon, Kings of, 372. 

Archon, creation o^ 52. 

Ardeshir, 206. 

Aristidep, 68. 

Armenia, 79. 

Arsacides, 81. 

Ariaxerxes I., 43. 

Artaxerxes II., 44. 

Asdrubal, 114. 

Assassins, Society of, 261. 

Assyria, 24. 

Astolfo, 228. 

Astyages, 39. 

Athens, 51. 56. 62. 

Attila, 186. 

Augsburg, recess of, 401. 

Augustus, title of, 159. 

Augustus (vid. Octavianus), 151. 

Aurelian. successor to Claudius, 167. 

Authar, king of the Lombards, 225. 

Avitus, 187. 

Ayesha, wife of Mohammed, 214. 

Azincourt, 344. 

B. 

Babylon, 24. 

Bactria, 23. 

Baliol, of Scotland, .365. 

Bannockburn, battle of, 359. 

Barcelona, Count of, 263. 

Basil 1., dynasty of, 256. 

Battle of Marathon, 43. 

Citnaxa, 44. 

Platsea, 57. 

Leuctra, 64. 

Mantineia, 67. 

Clissronea, 68. 128. 

Granicus, 69. 

Issus and Arbela, 69. 

Ipsus, 73. 

Allia, 103. 

^gatian Islands, 113. 

Trebia, 114. 

Traesimene, 114. 

Cannae, 114. 

Pharsalia, 140. 

Philippi, 147. 

Actium, 148. 

Chalons, 186. 

Zulpich, 200. 

Beder, 210. 

Cadesia, 219. 

Xeres, 222. 

Tours, 223. 

Foutcnoy, 230. 484. 

621 



622 



INDEX. 



Battle of Hastings, 252. 
L«gnauo, 293. 
Evesham, 303. 
Navas de Tolosa, 305. 
Ourique, 305. 
Wollstadt, 316. 
Meloria, 324. 
Morgarten, 334. 
Bosworth, 348. 
Crecy, 350. 
Poitiers, 350. 
Azincourt, 344. 
Bannockburn, 359. 
Nicopolis, 366. 
Varua, 366. 
Belgrade, 367. 
Angora, 368. 
Navarrete, 371. 
Aljubarrota, 373. 
Marignano, 391. 
Pavia, 392. 
Cerisoles, 398. 
Flodden, 402. 
Mohacs, 408. 
St. Quintin, 409. 
Jarnac, 413. 
Coutras, 414. 
Ivry, 415. 

Alcazar-quivir, 426. 
Buitenfeld, 433. 438. 
Liitzen, 434. 
Nordlingen, 434. 438. 
Naseby, 448. 
Seneffe, 456. 
Boyne, 462, 
Aughrim, 462. 
Blenheim, 466. 
Bamillies, 466. 
Almanza, 469. 
Malplaquet, 469. 
Narva, 471. 
Pnltowa, 472. 
Dettingen, 483. 
Culloden, 487. 
Minden, 489. 
Neer-VVinden, 512. 
Lodi, 616. 
Rivoli, 616. 
Marengo, 518. 
Hohenlinden, 518. 
Trafalgar, 521. 
Austerlitz, 521. 
Jena, 522. 
Friedland, 522. 
Vimiero, 523. 
Aspern, 523. 
Wagram, 523. 
Talavera, 524. 
Albuera, 524. 
Salamanca, 524. 
Borodino, 527. 
Leipzig, 527. 
Vittoria, 627. 
New Orleans, 536. 
Waterloo, 528. 



Battle of Napoli, 581. 

Agraphia, 681, 

Navarino, 581. 

Buena Vista, 589. 

Cerro Gordo, 589. 

Contreras, 590. 

Churubusco, 690. 

Mexico, 590. 

Paris, 598. 
Becket, Thomas a, 300, 
Beder, battle of, 2l0. 
Belgrade, battle of, 367. 
Belisarius, 192. 205. 
Benedict XI., 318. 
Bithynia, 75. 
Blenheim, battle of, 466. 
Bonaparte, Napoleon, 616. 
Bonaparte, Joseph and Louis, 522. 
Bonaparte, Jerome, 522. 
Boniface VIIL, Pope, 317. 
Bretigni, 353. 
Brissot, 511. 
Britain, 138. 159. 
Bruce, Robert, 356. 
Brutus, 144. 
Burgundians, 194. 
Burgundy, Duke of, 337. 
Byzantine Empire, 201. 



C. 

Caepio, 126. 

Calmar, union of, 361. 

Cambray, league of, 384. 

Cambray, peace of, 396. 

Cambyses, 40. 

Camillus, 102. 

Campo Formio, peace of, 516. 

Canute (Knut), 252. 

Caracalla, 162. 

Carinus, 167. 

Carthage, 82. 110. 116. 

Cams, 167. 

Cassander, 74. 

Cassius, Spurius, 94. 

Cassius and Brutus, 144. 

Catiline, 134. 

Catherine I. of Russia, 477. 

Catherine II., 494. 

Cato, 140. 

Csesar, 134. 139. 144. 

Caesar, title of, 159. 

Chaldeans, 27. 

Chalons, battle of, 186. 

Charlemagne, 231. 

Charles Martel, 227. 

Charles I. of England, 447. 

Charles II. of England, 453. 

Charles Edward, the Pretender, 476. 

Charles V. and VI. of France, 339. 363 

Charles VII. of France, 340. 

Charles VIII. of France, 341. 

Charles IX. of France, 410. 

Charles of Anjou, 328. 

Charles III, of Hungary, 391. 



INDEX. 



623 



Charles IT. of Naples, 328. 

Charles XII. of Sweden, 471. 

Chateau Cambresis, peace of, 323. 

China, 18. 

Chingis Khan, 306, 

Christ, 162. 

Christian II. of Denmark, 380. 

Christianity, corruption o^ 170. 

Cicero, M. Tullius, 134. 

Cimbri, 125. 

Cincinnatus, 101. 

Clarendon, constitutions o^ 300. 

Claudius, Emperor, 167. 

Clement III., Pope, 310. 

Clement V., Pope, 318. 

Clement VII., Pope, 403. 

Cleopatra, 143. 148. 

Clinton, Sir Henry, 500. 

Clive, Colonel, 505. 

Clusium, battle of, 103. 

Coligni, 413. 

Columbus, Christopher, 374. 

Commodus, 161. 

Couon, 63. 

Courad of Swabia, 198. 

Constantine the Great, 169. 

Coustantine II., 174. 

Constantinople, 170. 176. 226. 234. 

Constaiitinus, 169. 

Coutras, battle of, 414. 

Crassas, 134. 

Crecy, battle of, 350. 

Crespi, peace of, 268. 

Critolaus, 120. 

CIroesus, 40. 

Ci-omwell, 453. 

Crusades, 285. 310. 

Cyrus, 44. 



Dandolo, Henry, Doge of Venice, 327. 

Danes, or Northmen, 244. 252. 

Darius Hy.^'taspes, 40. 

Darius Codomanus, 44. 56. 

David, 37. 

David, son of Robert Bruce, 359. 

Daza, 113. 

Decemvirs, 97. 

Decius, 109. 

Decius, successor of Philip, 164. 

Dejoces, 39. 

Demetriu , 51. 

Denmark, 407. 471. 

Demosthenes, 62. 68. 

Dermot, M'Murrough, 304. 

Dettingen, battle of. 488. 

Dictatorship, 92. 

Dido, 82. 

Diocletian, 161. 

Dionysius of Syracuse, 86. 

Domitian, 159. 

Domnina, 180. 

Dorian migration, 49. 

Draco, 52. . 



Duillius, 113. 
Dumouriez, 512. 



E. 

EastrGoths, 192. 

Edward I. of England *•! 

Edward II. and III oi ifingland, 

342, 359. 
Edward IV. of England, 347. 
Edward V. of England, 347. 
Edward VI, of England. 42d. 
Egbert of England, 234. 
Egypt, 27. 81. 219. 
Elagabalus, 162, 
Elizabeth of England, 122. 
Emperors of Rome, 151-170. 
England, 227. 234. 251. 276. 297. 330. 

379, 402. 422. 444, 453. 462, 475, 487. 

551. 598. 
Epaminondas, 64. 
Ephori, 51. 
Ephesus, 136. 
Europe, 378. 



P. 



Fabian gens, 102. 

Ferdinand I. of Aragon. 372. 

Feudal system, 232. 

Flavian family, 126. 

Flodden, battle of, 402. 

Florence, 323, 

France, 225. 246. 275. 298. 349, 38a 

409. 439. 450, 511. 539, 596. 
Francis I., 391. .397. 
Francis II. of France, 402. 
Franks, the, 196. 

Frederic 1. ( Rarbarossa), 294. 310. 
Frederic II. of Germany, 297. 
Frederic, Elector "of Saxony 398. 
Frederic 11. of Prussia, 481, 
French Revolution, 511, 
Fronde, the, 450. 
Fulvia, wife of Antonius, 147. 

G. 

Gates, General, 439. 

Galba, 155. 

Gallienus, 164. 

Gasnevides, 262. 

Gauls, 102. 113. 

Genoa, 324. 

Germany, 227. 246. 285, 293, 330, 38a 

396. 
Genseric, 123, 
Godfrey of Bouillon, 192. 
Gondebald, 131. 
Gordian III., 163. 
Gorm the Old, 164, 
Goths, 180, 
Gotho-Germans, 191. 
Gracchus, 122. 
Granada, conquest of, 374. 



624 



INDEX. 



Greece, 45. 

Gregory I., Pope, 225. 
Gregory II., Pope, 222. 
Gregory VII., Pope, 270. 
Guelfs and Ghibillins, 293. 
Guise, Duke of, 416. 
Gustavus Adolphus, 433. 
Gustavus Vasa, 407. 
Gustavus III., 509. 

H. 

Hadrian, 160. 

Ilardicanute, 252. 

Harmodius and Aristogeiton, 65. 

Harold, 252. 

Harold, Fair-hair, 244. 

Haroon-er-Rasheed, 238. 

Henry I. of England, 279. 

Henry II. of Eugland, 299. 

Henry III. of Eugland, 303. 

Henry IV, of England, 343. 

Henry V. and VI. of England, 344. 

Henry VII. of England, 894. 

Henry VIII. of England, 402. 

Henry II. of France, 409. 

Henry III. of France, 414. 

Henry IV. of France, 415. 

Henry I. (the Fowler) of Germany, 

249. 
Henry II. and III. of Germany, 275. 
Henry IV. of Germany, 270. 
Henry V. of Germany, 293. 
Henry VI. of Germany, 297. 
Henry VII. of Germany, 330. 
Heraclius, 206. 
Hernicians, 109. 
Herod, 80. 
Heruli, the, 138. 
Hildebrand, Archdeacon of Rome, 

270. 
Hippias and Hipparchus, 55. 
Hippodrome, blue and green factions 

of, 201. 
Holland, 448. 
Holy War, 74. 
Honorius. 182. 
Howe, General, 499. 
Hungary, 362. 
Hungarians, the, 243. 
Hunneric, 135. 
Huns, the, 180. 
Huss, the Reformer, 333. 
Hjfder Ali, 605. 

I. 

lUyrians, 113. 

India, 22. 503. 

India, discovery of a passage to, 373. 

Innocent III., Pope, 287. 

Ireland, 300. 

Ismail, 386. 

Israel, 37. 

Italians, 127. 



Italy, 192. 194. 227. 250. 264. 269. 287. 

292, 317, 323. 383. 403. 428. 444. 664 

601. 
Ivry, battle o^ 415. 

J. 

James VI. of Scotland, 444. 

James II. of England, 457. 

Janus, temple of, 151. 

Jarnac, battle of, 413. 

Jason of Pherae, 67. 

Jerome of Prague, 323. 

Jerusalem, 138. 

Jesus Christ, 152. 

Jesuits, 493. 

Jews, 156. 173. 

Joan of Arc. 340. 

Joanna I. and II. of Naples, 329. 

John of England, 302. 

John XXII. Pope, 321. 

John III., Don of Portugal, 403. 

Judea, 80. 

Jugurtha. 125. 

Julian, 175. 

Julius II., Pope, 403, 

Justin, 203. 

Justin II., 203. 

Justinian, 202. 

K. 

Kelts, 103. 

Kerreem Khan of Persia, 506. 

Khadijah, wife of Mohammed 209 

Khaled, 213. 

Khalifs, 214. 

Khalifat at Bagdad, 316. 

Khosroo, 208. 

Knights at Rome, 126. 

Koran, 210. 

I" 

Laconia, 50. 
J^a Fayette, 511. 
Latins, 108. 
Leo IX., Pope, 273. 
Leo X., Pope, 390. 
Leonidas, 57, 
Lepidus, 147. 
Licinius, 104. 
Ligurians, 114. 
Lothaire, 246. 
Lothaire II., 246. 
Lombards, 194. 225. 
Louis VII. of France, 298. 
Louis VIII. of France, 299. 
Louis IX. of France, 299. 
Louis X. of France, 335. 
Louis XI. of France, 340. 
Louis XII. of France, 380. 
Louis XIII. of France, 439. 
Louis XIV. of France, 454. 
Louis XVI. of France, 612. 



INDEX. 



62d 



Loui>s XVIII. of France, 539. 
L-.Kullup, 133. 
l^uther, Dr. Martin, 390, 
Liitprand. 226. 228. 
Llitzen, battle of, 434. 
Ly(airgus, 50. 
Lysimachus, 75. 

M. 

Macbeth, 355. 

Maccabees, 80. 

Macedonian War, 115. 

Macodon, CO. 90. 

Marrinus, 162. 

Mselius, Spurius, 201. 

Magna Charta, 303. 

Majoriaiius. 187. 

Mahmood of Ghizni, 2^1. 

Mamelukes, b09. 

Man, 25. 

Manfred, 338. 

Manlius, lOS. 

Marcian, 202. 

Maria Theresa, 481. 

Marius. 126. 

Marlborough, Earl o:^. .350. 

Marj' of Eiiglaai, -l'^. 

Mary of Scotland, ■i.Qb. 

Matthias, 432. 

Maxentius, 169. 

Maurice, 169. 

Maarice, successor to tV»v- Irtnce of 

Oiange, 449. 
Maximianus, Herculiwj, )nyS. 
Maximilian of Germaa^ V^. 
Maximilian II., 427. 
Mede«, 38. 
Melaucthon, 396. 
Metellus, 126. 
Miltiades, 57. 
Mithridates VII., 127. 
Mohammed, 208. 
Mongols, 315. 
Moorad (Amurath), 365. 
Moore, Sir John, 349. 
Moriscoes, expulsion of, 3V2. 
Moses, 30. 
Motassem, Khalif, 262. 

N. 

Nadir Shah, 478. 

Naples, 293. 

Narva, battle of, 371. 

Narvarrete, battle of, 371. 

Navas de Tolosa, battle of, 305. 

Nebuchadnezzar, 27. 

Necker, minister of Louis XVI., 511. 

Nelson, Admiral, 517. 

Nero, Domitius, 155. 

Nerva, 152. 

Netherlands, 416. 

New-Orleans, battle of, 536. 

Next, 93. 

t)0 



Ney, Marshal, 524. 
Nicholas, Pope, 267. 
Nicholas III., Pope, 220. 
Nicopoiis, battle of. 36f». 
Ninieguen. peace of, 306. 
Normans. 264. 
Northmen, or Danes, 244. 
Numerian, 111. 



Octavius, consul, 128. 

Octavianus, 144. 

Odoacer, 188. 

Ofella, 132. 

Omar, Khalif, 214. 

Ommiyades, the, 221. 

Opimius, 125. 

Orchau, 365. 

Orleans, Duke of, 339. * 

O'Ruarc of Breffney, 304. 

Othman, Khalif, 214. 

Otho, Emperor of Rome, 155. 

Otho I., II., III., of Germany, 260. 

Ottomans, the, 278. 

Ourique, battle of, 305. 



Papal power, 269. 287. 317. 
Parthia, 81. 
Paulus iEmilius, 718. 
Paul III., Pope, 403. 
Pavia, battle of, 392. 
Peace of Antalcidas, 63. 

Verdun, 240. 

Constance, 293. 

Bretigni, 353. 

Cam bray, 396. 

Crespi, 398. 

Passau, 402. 

Chateau Cambresia, 409. 

Westphalia, 439. 

Breda, 454. 

Aix-la-Chapelle, 487. 

Nimeguen, 4.i9. 

Utrecht, 470. 

Vienna, 477. 

Carlowitz, 477. 

Paris, 490. 528. 

Campo Formio, 516w 

LuneviUe, 518. 

Amiens. 521. 

Tilsit, 522. 
Pedro, of Portugal, 372. 
Peisistratus, 55. 
Pelopidas, 64. 
Peloponnesian War, 58. 
Pembroke, Earl of, surnamed Strongs 

bow, 304. 
Peninsular War, 524. 
Perdiccas, 73. 
Pericles, 58. 

Persia, 206. 219. 306. 386. 449. 478. 
Persians, 38. 



626 



INDEX, 



Peter tbe CraeL 3T2. 

y«ter the Great, 4T1. 

Petsr the Hermit, 285, 

Philip of Macedon, 67. 

Philip II. ©f France, 298. 311, 

Philip in., the Bold, 334. 

Philip IV., the Fair. 835. 

PhiJip, SKceessor to ©ordoa III, 163. 

Philip II. of Spain, 408. 

Philip III. and IV. of Spain, 443. 

Philistimes, 2». 

Phcenidans, 2&, 

Pharsalia, battie o^ 140. 

Pisa, 324. 

Planens, 144. 

Plantagenets, the, 299. 342. 

Poland, 380. 427. 494. 

Pompeiua, Caeius, 134. 143. 

p0BLtU3, 76. 

PopeS;, the, 269. 287. 21%. 

Popish Plot, 439. 

Porseuna, 91. 

Portugal, 305. 372. 384. 403. 426. 

Pragmatic Sanction, 476. 

Probu9, 167. 

Protestants, mgim &f, 39&. 

Ptolemy, 81. 

Ptolemy II. and III., 82. 

Publilius Philo, 109. 

Pmnic War, I., 110. 11., 114. Ill, 116. 

Pyrenees, peace o^ 453. 

Pyrrhus, 109. 

B. 

Raymond of Totilouse^ 285. 29&. 

Reformation, 390. 

Regulus, 113. 

Republics, Italian, 323. 

Revolution, English, 460. 

Richard I. of England, 300.311. 

Richard II. of Englaaid, 343. 353. 360. 

Richard III. of England, 347. 

Rieheiieu, Cardinal, 440. 

Robert, son of Wiliiam the Con- 
queror, 279. 

Robert IIT. of Scotland, 360i 

Robespierre, 512. 

Rodolf of Hapsburg, 330. 

Rogations, the Licinian, 104. 

Rome, 85. 110. 121. 151. 174. 187. 

Russia, 252. 380. 449. 471.477. 488. 527. 
573. 605. 

Ryehouse Plot, 459. 

S. 

Sabelliaa Race, 127. 

Saladin, 236. 239. * 

■?amnite War, 108. 

Samuel, 37. 

^assanian Kings, 207. 

ilaul, 37. 

'avoy, 383. 

tcaudinavia, 360. 380. 



Seipio, 119. 

Si otiand, 35&. 

Seleucns, 73. 

Selim I. of Turkey, 385. 

Selim II. of Turkey, 431, 

Selim III. of Turkey, 51©. 52* 

Seljookians, 280. 

Sertorius, 132. 

Servius TuUius, 87, 

Severus, Alexander, 162. 

Severua, Septimius, 162. 

Shahpoor, King of Persia, 207. ' 

Sheeahs and Soonees, 215. 

Sicily, 293. 

Sigmund, 195. 

Sigismund, King of Hungary, 3^ 

Silesian War, 481. 

Simon de Montfort, 303. 

Solomon, 37. 

Solon, 55. 

Spain, 120. 200. 221. 263, 280. 304. 30, 

384. 403. 443. 462. 6^. 554. 
Sparta, 50-63. 
Spartaeus, 132. 
Spurius MasliBS, 98. 
Stephen, King of England, 279^ 
Stolo, e. Licinias, 104. 
Suffavee, 386. 
Suleiman, 407, 408. 
Sulla, 127. 
Sultan, title of, 263. 
SuTaroff, 340. 
Switzerland, 334. 38®^. 
Sweden, 407. 471. 
Syracuse, 110. 
Syria, 79. 115. 
Syrian Wars, 11&. 

T. 

Tacitus, 167. 

Tadmor, 38. 

Tarik, 222. 

Tarquin, 87. 

Tarqisinius, 92. 

Tatars, 367. 

Templars, 286. 

Test Act, 459. 

Thebes, 52. 

Theioistocles, 57. 

Theodorie, 192. 

Theodosius, 181. 

Theodosius II., 201. 

Thermopylae, 57. 

Thetes, the, 55. 

Thrace, 75. 

Tiberius, successor to Augttstus, 152. 

Tiberius, successor to Justin II., 20&. 

Timoor, 367. 

Tippoo, son to Hyder All, 6©5. 

Titus, son to Vespasian, 159, 

Tooloon, 262, 

Toghrul Beg, 281. 

Totila, 193. 

Trajan, 159. 



INDEX. 



62: 



rribrinate at Rome, 92. 

Triumvirate, 147. 

Turk<'y, 385. 407. 431. 449. 477. 495. 

577. 605. 
Tuscans, 91. 

U. 

Umhrian Kace, 127. 
Urban II., 191. 
Urban VI., 321. 
Utrecht, peace of, 470. 

V. 

Valens, 180. 

Valeutinian III., 187. 

Valerian, 164. 

Varna, battle of, 366. 

Vasa, GustaTUS, of Sweden, 407. 

V.5ii, 104. 

Venice, 327. 

Verdun, treaty of, 240. 

Vervins, treaty of, 416. 

Vespasian, 156. 

Virginia and Virginius, 98. 

Viriatus, 120. 

Vitellius, 156. 

Vortigern, 200. 



W. ' 

Wales, union of, 342. 
Wallace, William, 358. 
Washington, General, 499. 
Waterloo, battle of, 528. 
Wellington, Lord, 524. 
West-Goths in Spain, 200. 
Westphalia, peace of, 439. 
Wickliffe, the Reformer, 322. 
William I., or Conqueror, 252. 27(L 
William II. of England, 279. 
William III. of England, 462. 
William of Sicily, 298. 



X. 



Xanthippus, 113. 
Xerxes, 57. 

T. 

Tacoob-ben-Leis, 258. 
Yezdejird, 207. 

Z. 

Zeno, 192. 

Zuinglius, the Reformer, 891. 



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